Telugu Desam Party national president N. Chandrababu Naidu on Friday said it was not possible for drug mafia in the State to establish direct links with the 'gangs' in Afghanistan without the support of “high and influential people” in the State.
Speaking after formally welcoming the ruling YSR Congress Party leaders and activists from Kanigiri in Prakasam district who joined the TDP under the leadership of former MLA Ugra Narasimha Reddy, Mr. Naidu asked how was it possible for an ordinary person like Machavaram Sudhakar of Aashi Trading Company to open direct channels with the Afghan heroin mafia.
“The investigating agencies should nab the bigwigs in the State who are behind the illegal activities of Sudhakar. The AP mafia has emerged as a threat not just to the State but to the whole country,” he said.
The TDP chief said that people gave “one chance” to the YSRCP believing in its election promises. But they were now vexed with Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s “misrule fraught with corruption and anarchy”.
He slammed the police for issuing notices to the TDP leaders, instead of nabbing the gangsters and mafia gangs.
Referring to the notice served on former MLA Dhulipalla Narendra by the Kakinada police, he said instead of “pleasing their political bosses, the police should explain what led to the burning of the boats under suspicious circumstances”. He said the TDP was not afraid of such suppression. He also slammed the government for imposing tax on garbage.
Mr. Naidu said the Jagan Government had ruined the mega projects of Amaravati and Polavaram that could have changed the fortunes of the people of the State. The Chief Minister had destroyed the ₹2 lakh crore worth capital city project that Amaravati was and the crucial Polavaram project had not made any headway under the YSRCP rule, he said.
Earlier, Mr. Naidu opened a grievance cell at the TDP central office for receiving bills pertaining to the Neeru-Chettu programme, pending for payment for last two and half years. He said the TDP would fight legally for payment of the nearly ₹1,277 crore pending bills across the State. Bills worth another ₹500 crore were also pending, for which the tokens were not generated so far, he alleged.
