The residents of Mangalagiri Assembly constituency, under the banner of the CPI(M), staged a protest on Wednesday, demanding house sites, registered land titles (pattas), and houses promised by the coalition government.

Led by CPI(M) State Secretariat member Ch. Babu Rao and district secretary Y. Nethaji, protesters marched from Undavalli-Tadepalli Centre to Andhra Pradesh Education and IT Minister Nara Lokesh’s camp office under the ‘Chalo Lokesh Camp Office’ call.

They demanded that every eligible poor family be allotted two cents of land and that those living on government land receive registered pattas.

The police stopped the rally at several points using barricades, leading to tense moments as protesters pushed ahead. The protesters later staged a sit-in on the old Vijayawada-Mangalagiri highway near KL Rao Colony, disrupting traffic.

The protest ended after Mangalagiri Municipal Corporation Assistant City Planner Prashanth Kumar and Mr. Lokesh’s Personal Assistant Satyanarayana met the protesters. The officials accepted pleas from the beneficiaries and assured them that a meeting with the Minister would be arranged within 15 days.

They said the applications would be examined within three months, eligible families would receive house sites, and the second phase of patta distribution would begin on July 20 and 21.

Addressing the protesters, CPI(M) leaders accused Mr. Lokesh of failing to fulfil the election promises on providing land titles and housing for poor families. They alleged that while government land was being allotted for other purposes, thousands of homeless families in the constituency were still waiting for house sites and pattas.

The party warned that if the Minister did not respond by the end of this month, it would intensify agitation in August.

Published - July 15, 2026 07:31 pm IST