Khammam, Andhra Pradesh:
The situation was tense for the third day in the Telangana districts of Andhra Pradesh, after early morning attacks in Khammam on the homes of former union minister Renuka Chowdhury and Congress leader J Venkat Rao.
This happened even as TRS president and Mahbubnagar MP K.Chandrasekhara Rao or KCR, reportedly resumed his fast inside a government hospital in Khammam. There are concerns over his health as KCR is diabetic. And any news of deterioration in his health could spin out of control into a law and order situation.
(Read: Tense Telangana: Andhra administration on alert)KCR's son K.T.Rama Rao, an MLA and TRS leader, has demanded that Rao be shifted saying: ``All the doctors and other officials of the administration in Khammam are from the Andhra region and therefore there is a threat to KCR's life here. So we want him to be shifted from Khammam to Hyderabad or Warangal.
A joint action committee of students supporting the demand for a separate Telangana state held a meeting on Tuesday night. The students were angry over reports that KCR had given up his fast, but now they are once again threatening that if anything happens to KCR, Telangana will burn.
Before he set off on his fast-unto-death on the weekend, KCR predicted the outbreak of violence saying it was waiting to happen. He said: "Will be worse than Shiv Sena... if any section of media continues to spit venom on the movement of Telangana...If they want to deal everyone with an iron hand, they will face the ire of Telangana. The consequences will be very serious.''
(Watch: KCR warned of 'serious consequences')On Wednesday morning, there were two separate attacks, allegedly by his supporters.
First, the house of former union minister Renuka Chowdhury was vandalised. Chowdhury was not at home when a group of men broke into the house.
(Watch: Renuka Chowdhury's house vandalised)A cloth dipped in petrol was thrown inside and put on fire, which caused some damage. Glasspanes were broken at her office that adjoins the residence, and a handwritten letter was left behind with "TRS" written on it. TRS stands for the Telangana Rashtra Samiti. Led by K Chandrashekhara Rao, or KCR, this party has been demanding a separate state for Telangana.
"I pity the people who're trying to get political mileage," said Chowdhury to NDTV when informed of the attack at her home.
(Watch: Attackers want political mileage: Renuka)Soon after that incident, the office of Jalagam Venkat Rao, former Congress MLA and son of former chief minister J.Vengal Rao, was attacked in Khammam.
(Dr Prannoy Roy blogs on Andhra violence) These strikes are seen as retaliation by the TRS for what it sees as lack of support by other politicians for the proposed Telangana state. It is also an attempt to grab national headlines and draw the attention of the Congress government to the demand for a separate Telangana.
(Blog: On the rocks)Rao had announced an indefinite hunger fast in support of the movement, but was arrested. His party workers and student support groups then went on the rampage. On Monday, students of Osmania University set several buses on fire. Three students are reported to have set themselves on fire in support of the Telangana cause.
(Watch: TRS workers go on rampage)Rao was shown accepting a glass of juice, breaking his fast on Monday evening. That angered many pro-Telangana protestors who saw this as yet another let-down by a politician of the Telangana cause.
(In pics: The violent TRS show)But now Rao has said he was "forced" to drink the juice and he is said to have resumed his fast in the hospital. Doctors are worried about his health as he is known to be diabetic.
The authorities are also worried that things could get out of hand if Rao's condition deteriorates. The district collector met Rao in hospital on Wednesday morning requesting him not to fast.