Hyderabad:Congress leader Marri Shashidhar Reddy on Sunday said that he was not allowed to pay homage to late former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao on his birth centenary celebrations in Hyderabad.
"There was no invitation to me for this function but out of respect for the late Narasimha Rao ji, I made it a point to reach there early at 9 am itself, much before the commencement of the official programme. I was stopped at the police barricade near the intersection of Minister Road and Necklace Road, a short distance from the samadhi. I was told that I cannot proceed any further and the Hyderabad Police Commissioner's permission would be required," Reddy said in a statement.
"I called Commissioner of Police directly but I was told that since this is a state programme and nobody is to be allowed before the Chief Minister pays his tributes. It would have just taken five minutes for me to reach the venue, pay my homage and leave from there. I was disappointed and even felt humiliated and returned home," Reddy added.
He said that he later learnt that at a meeting held by the Chief Secretary yesterday, a decision to this effect was taken.