HYDERABAD: Clashes erupted between students of Osmania University seeking a separate Telangana state and the police for the second consecutive day Wednesday.Police fired teargas shells to disperse a large number of students who tried to defy ban orders in the city by taking out a rally.Trouble began when students tried to march out of the campus but were prevented by the police at the main gate.Police officers asked students to return to the campus as prohibitory orders under section 144 of the criminal procedure code banning the assembly of five or more people were in force in the city.However, students tried to force their way through security barricades and pelted stones. The police retaliated with teargas.According to eyewitnesses, a few media persons were injured in the stone pelting by students.The students continued to pelt stones on the police from inside the campus.Hyderabad police commissioner A.K. Khan denied reports that police opened fire on students. He told reporters that the police only used teargas to disperse students who were pelting stones.Leaders of the students' Joint Action Committee (JAC) said they were determined to go ahead with the rally to Gun Park, near the state assembly. A police officer said there was no permission for the rally in view of the ban orders.Earlier, Telangana Joint Action Committee (JAC) convenor M. Kodandaram was arrested Wednesday when he was heading towards Osmania University.Kodandaram was taken into custody at the RTC cross roads for violating prohibitory orders, police said.The arrest triggered strong protest from students and other pro-Telangana groups.As many as 31 companies of central paramilitary forces have been deployed in Hyderabad to help in maintaining law and order. A total of 70 companies have been rushed to the Telangana region to tackle the protests.The campus was rocked by day-long clashes between students and police Tuesday. Osmania University has again emerged as the nerve centre of the Telangana agitation.Decide on Telangana, CPI-M tells governmentThe Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Wednesday urged the government to quickly decide on the growing demand for a Telangana state in Andhra Pradesh."The political crisis in Andhra Pradesh with regard to the Telangana issue has deepened with the resignation of many legislators and MPs belonging to the Telangana region," the party said."The inaction of the central government and the Congress leadership in resolving the issue is the main cause for the present impasse."It said Home Minister P. Chidambaram had convened a meeting of political parties from Andhra Pradesh after the Justice Srikrishna Committee submitted its report on the issue to the central government."But after that, the government has not taken any decision. The CPI-M demands that the government take a decision on the matter immediately."
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