'Para military forces in Andhra not meant to suppress protest'

"People need not have any apprehensions or misgivings over the deployment of central para-military forces. They are only for maintenance of law and order across the state and not to suppress any agitations or protests," Home Minister P Sabita Indra Reddy told newsmen at the end of a high-level review meeting on law and order chaired by Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy this evening.

She said the central forces were being deployed in all the three regions of the state and not in any particular region, though there would be higher deployment in 'trouble-prone areas'.

The Home Minister’s statement assumes significance as Congress MPs from Telangana as well as the Telangana Rashtra Samiti, have demanded immediate withdrawal of central security forces saying they were causing apprehensions among the people.

The Telangana Congress MPs met the Chief Minister earlier in the day and demanded withdrawal of central forces forthwith.

The Minister said the state had requested the Centre for deployment of para-military forces as the local police might not be able to handle any difficult situation on its own.