The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders continued to cross swords over the raw deal meted out to Andhra Pradesh on Monday. In an apparent breach of alliance dharma, each party’s leaders targeted the other party leaders at personal level. BJP MLC Somu Veeraraju’s remarks against Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu triggered frenzied reaction from the TDP leaders. They also burnt the effigy of the MLC.
TDP MLC Buddha Venkanna alleged that Mr. Veeraraju was acting at the behest of YSR Congress president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy. Stating that Mr. Naidu blessed Mr. Veeraraju with MLC for being alliance partner member, he said: “Was he not aware that Mr. Naidu was corrupt or not when he accepted MLC post?
“Though the Chief Minister has suggested that we should refrain from commenting against the BJP leaders, I could not control my anger. My blood is boiling for his comments that trading is taking place in the State,” he said. TDP Vinukonda MLA G.V Anjaneyulu had labelled Mr. Veerraju as an “agent of Jagan’’. Mr. Jagan was playing a “double game” on the Budget — his MPs were lauding the Centre on it in Delhi while the local leaders were staging agitations against it, he said.
Former Minister and chief whip of TDP in Legislative Council Dokka Manikya Vara Prasad alleged that Mr. Veerraju was peeved at not being nominated as the leader of the party. He also found fault with YSRCP MP Y. Vijay Sai Reddy appreciating the Budget as pro farmer and said the Opposition party had been getting closer to the BJP to get Mr. Jagan out of the CBI cases.
YSR Cong. charge
The YSR Congress too joined the issue saying the Telugu Desam had no answers to Mr. Veeraraju’s poser how Mr. Naidu, who used to own just two acres, became so rich. YSR Congress leader Jogi Ramesh said Mr. Naidu was unable to give a proper reply to the comments made by the BJP leader and made Telugu Desam leaders to speak on his behalf. Calling the Telugu Desam leaders, who were raising their voice against Mr. Veeraju, as extra players, he pointed out that it was not Mr. Jagan but a senior leader of the alliance party (BJP) who made fresh allegations, he said.
