The Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) will observe a Satyagraha on Gandhi Jayanti on Friday, protesting against the delay on the part of the Centre in granting special category status to the State and its “failure” to fulfil the promises given at the time of bifurcation.
Congress leaders, led by APCC president N. Raghuveera Reddy, will stage the Satyagraha at Rajahmundry, while similar protests will be organised at all district headquarters.
The protest, Mr. Reddy said, was aimed at mounting pressure on the Centre to expeditiously grant special category status to the State. Maintaining that the Congress supported the strike called by truckers and petrol pump owners, he demanded that the government withdraw value added tax (VAT) that had become a burden on petrol pump owners.
He said the prices of petroleum products were much less in the State during the tenure of the previous Congress government.
“The TDP government, however, charged prices much higher than what prevailed in the neighbouring States, resulting in the closure of several petrol pumps across the State and rendering scores of youth unemployed. Fuel consumption has not gone up, and people are depending on petrol pumps in other States, as they supply fuel at cheaper rate,” he said.
Mr. Reddy made light of the declaration of assets by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s son Nara Lokesh and dared Mr. Naidu to swear before his favourite deity Kanipakam Vinayaka that the numbers given by his son were correct. “People will trust him if he agrees to swear at Kanipakam,” he said.
The protest is aimed at mounting pressure on the Centre to grant special category status to State
