Hyderabad: Protests by opposition parties continued in Telangana on Thursday over the massive bungling in Intermediate examinations.
The shutdown called by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) demanding justice to the students had no impact on the normal life.
BJP leaders and workers staged sit-in at the depots of Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) in various parts of the state to stop buses from coming out but police arrested the protesters.
The BJP cadres took out rallies in Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Adilabad and other towns, demanding judicial probe into the goof-up by Board of Intermediate Education (BIE), action against the board officials and Globarena Technologies, holding them responsible for the bungling. They also demanded compensation to the families of students who committed suicide.
Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) also staged protests to demand action against those responsible for the goof-up. The protesters forced closure of some educational institutions in Karimnagar district and damaged the furniture of at least two colleges.
In Hyderabad, BJP national General Secretary Muralidhar Rao, senior leaders Bandaru Dattaterya, C. Ramachandra Reddy and others were arrested when they staged a sit-in at the state secretariat. Raising slogans against the government and seeking justice to the students, the protesters squatted on the road. Police personnel bodily lifted them to the waiting vehicles and shifted them to a police station.
State BJP President K. Laxman continued his fast at Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) for a fourth day. Police had forcibly shifted Laxman to NIMS after he began indefinite fast on Monday at the BJP office.
Meanwhile, the Congress party also continued its protest over the issue. Leaders of National Students Union of India (NSUI) and Youth Congress began a 48-hour fast at Gandhi Bhavan, the Congress headquarters.
Youth Congress State President Anil Kumar Yadav, NSUI State President Venkat and others were participating in the fast. Senior Congress leader V. Hanumantha Rao and state Congress President Revanth Reddy expressed solidarity with the fasting leaders.
They reiterated the demand for a probe by a sitting judge of the high court. The Congress leaders alleged that the Telangana Rashtra Samithi government was trying to shield Globarena Technologies as the proprietors of the company have close links with the leaders of the ruling party.
BIE had announced Intermediate (11th and 12th standard) examinations on April 18. Nearly 3.5 lakh out of over nine lakh students failed in the exams. More than 20 students have committed suicide over failure in the exams during the last two weeks.
Protests by the opposition parties and students' unions have forced the government to order free re-verification of answer sheets of all the students who failed to obtain pass marks.