News In Brief

Mass protests hit India over firing of Rama Rao

More than a million people staged rallies across India on Saturday to protest Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's dismissal of an opposition state government. Activity in the states of Karnataka and West Bengal was nearly halted by general strikes.

Opposition parties had called for a nationwide protest day against the dismissal of the Andhra Pradesh state government led by former actor N. T. Rama Rao. Mrs. Gandhi's hand-picked governor in Andhra Pradesh, Ram Lal, and the state's Congress (I) Party chief, A. Madan Mohan, resigned Friday in apparent moves to mollify the critics