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Syed Amin Jafri in Hyderabad
Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has urged Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to prevent karsevaks from reaching Ayodhya so that tensions do not build up on the temple issue.
Stating that no force or group be allowed to disrupt the secular fabric, he also appealed to the prime minister to create an environment of peace and goodwill. He called upon the people of Andhra Pradesh -- both Hindus and Muslims -- not to proceed to Ayodhya to either support or oppose the construction of the Ram temple there, and urged them to wait for the judicial verdict.
In a statement, Chandrababu Naidu reiterated his stand on Ayodhya and said that no groups should be allowed to enter the disputed land and take law into their hands.
He made it clear that the Ayodhya issue should be resolved through the court verdict.
"The central government is duty bound to maintain status-quo in the disputed land in Ayodhya and to ensure that all adequate measures are taken to prevent any untoward incident," he said.
He advised the central government not to concentrate on temples and masjids and urged the people to maintain peace and protect the secular character of the country. He also asked all the state governments, political parties and religious communities to ensure peace and tranquillity, as the nation faced bigger problems such as illiteracy, poverty and terrorism.
The chief minister also instructed the police to take precautionary measures to ensure law and order in the state following the attack on the Sabarmati Express train in Gujarat on Wednesday.
He expressed shock over the incident and said, "Violence in any form by anyone cannot be tolerated and no one, however mighty they maybe, be allowed to disrupt the peace and tranquillity in the country.
Meanwhile, the police intensified patrolling of all important places in the state capital and beefed up the security at all vital installations. The police mounted vigil on anti-social and communal elements and deployed pickets in communally sensitive areas.
About 300 karsevaks who were proceeding to Ayodhya were detained at Secunderabad railway station on Wednesday night.
City police teams led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (North zone) M Punna Rao, swooped down on 300 karsevaks as they were about to board the Ayodhya-bound Varanasi Express and detained them. They were later taken to Gopalpuram police station and released.
Most of the karsevaks detained at Secunderabad station had arrived from Rayalaseema region and they were on their way to take part in the yagna at the disputed site at Ayodhya. The karsevaks raised slogans of 'Jai Sri Ram' even as the police led them out of the railway station.
The director general of police, Andhra Pradesh, has instructed the commissioners and superintendents of police as well as the Railway Police to stop the people intending to go to Ayodhya.
DGP Pervaram Ramulu issued the directive even as several hundred Vishwa Hindu Parishad activists obstructed the New Delhi-bound Kerala Express train at the railway station in the coastal city of Vijayawada for sometime on Wednesday, when they were not allowed to proceed to Ayodhya without valid tickets.
The DGP also asked the police officials to keep a strict vigil on anti-social elements who were trying to create law and order problem.
These steps, he said, were taken as a precautionary measure to avoid further escalation of the problem.
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