Hyderabad, May 5: The Shankarpally police on Saturday arrested 18 members belonging to the Congress and Telugu Desam for harassing youths belonging to the Backward Class.

According to the police, an agricultural pumpset was reportedly stolen from the farm of Venkat Ram Reddy in Tangutur village in Shankarpally on April 17. The needle of suspicion pointed towards three persons Esuvu, Esaiah and Ramulu. On April 19, the village elders and members of panchayat beat up the three men and paraded them through the village.

They later took them to the outskirts of the village and placed boulders weighing 30 kg each on their backs. The three men complained to the Shankarpally police on April 30, who registered a case against the accused under the SC\ST Atrocities Act under sections 341 and 324.

The accused include Raju Reddy a Congress leader and ex-sarpanch of Shankarpally and his followers and Balram Reddy a TD leader and his followers.

While the Congress members were arrested, the TD men are absconding. Police said that a TD leader from Chevella visited the police station on Saturday and threatened the SI not to initiate any action against the TD men. He was booked under section 353, 186 and 506 of IPC.

Vijayawada, May 5: 'Dalitha Bahujana Sureedu' was formed with the merger of nine associations which were struggling for their rights under various banners.

Speaking to newsmen here on Saturday, Dalitha Bahujana Sureedu State convenor V Krishna Swaroop said the new organisation would fight for the protection of the rights of the minorities, Bahujans and the Dalits in the State.

He said the State and Central governments which are bound to provide social equality to the Bahujans are oppressing them and exploiting them in the name of globalisation and privatisation.

The aims and aspirations of Dr Ambedkar, Phule and Periyar who had achieved reservations for the oppressed were being denied with the privatisation.

He said the assets of the government were being sold to the caste Hindus. He also accused Prime Minister A B Vajpayee and Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu of planning to scrap the reservations in the country.

Krishna Swaroop said the new outfit was formed under this backdrop to achieve social equality, self-respect and State power to the Dalits and Bahujans.

He said it is a historical moment to merge nine organisations into it and the main aim of the organisation is to achieve Dalitha Bahujana State. The Union government should give permission to discuss the caste problem in the country in a meet against the racial apathy, he added.

Krishna Swaroop said the organisations like Dalitha Mahasabha-Uttharandhra, Dalitha Bahujana Sakthi-Vizag, Dalitha Bahujana Porata Samithi-East and West Godavari districts, SC, ST, BC and Minorities Ikya Vedika-Krishna, Christhava Yuvasena-Krishna, Dalitha Porata Samithi Guntur, Dalitha Bahujana Vidyarthi Samakya, Andhra Pradesh Dalitha Samithi and Dalitha Bahujan Force merged to form the new organisation. Referring to the other activities of Sureedu, Swaroop said it would launch a political struggle in the State and mobilise the Dalitha Bahujans for it.

It would also fight and campaign against the State and Central governments which were dominated by people of forward communities.

Swaroop demanded that the government initiate action against the forward castes which were attacking the Dalitha Bahujans and minorities. He asked the government to order an inquiry into the misappropriation of funds allocated to the welfare of SCs, STs and BCs.