The YSR Congress has decided to ensure resignation of its MPs from the Parliament during or after the monsoon session.
YSR Congress president and Opposition leader in the Assembly Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy said it was decided to ask the party MPs to quit from their posts and go for elections on the plank of special category status once Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s dispensation completes three years in office in June.
“All of us should hang our heads in shame for non-fulfilment of an assurance given on the floor of the Parliament,” he said adding the the party had waited for two-and-a-half years for fulfilment of the assurance .
Mr. Jagan asked the Chief Minister to recall his Ministers from the Union Cabinet and serve an ultimatum on the Central government. The State should take inspiration from neighbouring Tamil Nadu where all the political parties had joined forces to mount pressure on the Centre for ensuring continuation of Jallikattu. “They joined forces in support of a traditional sport. Special status is a life and death question for Andhra Pradesh,” he said.
He alleged that Mr. Naidu was trying to hoodwink the people in the name of significant investments that were coming to the State. The statistics mentioned in the socio-economic survey released by the government clearly show that investments to the tune of ₹ 4,138 crore were made in 2014-15 and ₹ 5,561 crore in 2015-16. A recent report released by the KPMG exposed that over 26,000 micro, small and medium enterprises were turned sick due to “high power tariffs” and “unfavourable government policies”, among others.
The government, however, made tall claims on signing MoUs worth ₹ 4.68 lakh crore during the partnership summit last year while the actual investments made were only to the tune of ₹ 1,452 crore so far. He charged Mr. Naidu with mortgaging the interests of the State for his personal ends as was evident from the manner in which the State could not fight the projects being taken up by the upper riparian States on Krishna and Godavari rivers.
Candlelight rally
Mr. Jagan said he would participate in the candlelight rally at Visakhapatnam to express his party’s solidarity with the people agitating for the coveted status that would bestow many benefits to the State. He expressed concern over the restrictions being imposed by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu-led State government on the proposed peaceful protest claiming that prohibitory orders under Sections 144 and 30 had already been imposed in different parts of the State.
