Khammam (Telangana) [India], March 10 : Telangana Jagruthi President Kalvakuntla Kavitha and others were detained by police on Tuesday while on a hunger strike in support of Velugumatla victims of the alleged demolition of houses in the village.
They were detained at Ambedkar Bhavan in Khammam district and taken into custody. They are being shifted to Hyderabad.
This comes after Kavitha expressed solidarity with families affected by the alleged demolition of houses in Velugumatla village in Khammam district on Monday.
After meeting the affected families, Kavitha staged a sit-in protest along with them at the statue of BR Ambedkar located at the ZP Centre in Khammam city. She was joined by Visharadhan Maharaj and other supporters, demanding justice for the displaced residents.
Police later intervened during the protest and detained the demonstrators for holding a demonstration without prior permission.
The detainees were subsequently released after being served notices under Section 41 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).
Later in the night, Kavitha reached Ambedkar Bhavan in Khammam and began an indefinite hunger strike along with the displaced residents of Velugumatla, intensifying the protest against what she termed "illegal demolitions."
According to Telangana Jagruthi, the Velugumatla incident refers to the demolition of several houses in the village near Khammam city in February 2026, which has since triggered political protests and a public debate.
Speaking to ANI, Kavitha accused the Congress government of bulldozing the houses of poors in Khammam.
"Today I am in Khammam district. I am sitting on an indefinite hunger strike, along with Mr Visharadan. We are both here protesting the way the houses of the poorest of the poor were bulldozed by the Congress Govt here in Khammam. It is very unfortunate that after bulldozing the houses, after razing them down, they have brought all these people to a shelter here. The shelter home is in a very bad condition. In the morning we had come here, asking the Collector of Khammam to come and visit the shelter. He did not visit. So, we have conducted a day-long protest and a "Raasta Roko" but nothing came out of the Government. So, we have decided to sit on an indefinite hunger strike because the place where these houses were bulldozed is where we want the houses of the poor to be constructed again," she said.
The outskirts of Khammam have become the epicentre of a heated political and humanitarian standoff following the large-scale demolition of houses in the Vinoba Nagar area of Velugumatla village.
The operation, which took place in late February 2026, has left hundreds of families displaced and has triggered sharp criticism from opposition parties, including Telangana Jagruthi and the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).