Telugu Desam Party (TDP) district president Somisetty Venkateswarlu on Wednesday flayed the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy for stating that he didn’t trust the State police with its investigation into the attack on him at the Visakhapatnam airport, and asked him if he trusted personnel on his security detail during the 'padayatra'.
Speaking to reporters, Mr. Venkateswarlu termed the statement ‘dramatic’ and said Mr. Reddy had made it to gain political mileage and disrupt the law and order across the State. “He has refused to cooperate with the police citing trust issues, but what about those guarding him. Did he forget that those personnel to belong to the A.P. police?” he asked.
Alleging that the YSRCP and other opposition parties including the Jana Sena Party (JSP) had colluded with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Mr. Venkateswarlu said such ‘drama’ would come to nought as people had realised their true intentions.
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‘Anti-Modi wave’
Signalling an ‘anti-Modi wave’ across the country, Mr. Venkateswarlu said Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu's efforts to join hands with other political parties for the betterment of the State and the country would change the political scenario in the forthcoming elections. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised many things to people of Andhra Pradesh and had failed in implementing them. Even his schemes have been a colossal failure with people burdened by every move of the Central government. This would surely reflect in the future,” he said.
Meanwhile, commenting on the registration of workers for the TDP in the district, Mr. Venkateswarlu said the target of 7 lakh workers would easily be crossed as many had showed interest in supporting the party, which had their welfare and State's development in mind.
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Right PM candidate
Former MLA and Congress leader Byreddy Rajasekhar Reddy downplayed the TDP's role in selection of the prime ministerial candidate and said All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Rahul Gandhi was the right candidate, and that they would continue efforts to see him at the post.
“Electing Mr. Gandhi as the PM candidate is the right step for the country's politics and also for Andhra Pradesh. He has promised to accord special category status to the State during his visit to Kurnool and the TDP should realise they are in no position to control the outcome,” he added. Mr. Reddy said the TDP could never dictate terms to anyone. Such days were long gone.