Synopsis
YSRCP chief Jagan Mohan Reddy announces a peaceful protest in New Delhi to address the lawlessness in Andhra Pradesh under the current government. Allegations of political violence and a controversial murder case add to the growing tension between political parties in the state.
ANIYSRCP chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday said the party will hold a peaceful protest in New Delhi on July 24 to draw the nation’s attention towards “the lawlessness and anarchy that have plagued” Andhra Pradesh since TDP’s N Chandrababu Naidu became CM. Reddy said appointments have also been sought from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Droupadi Murmu and Home Minister Amit Shah to apprise them of the “deteriorating” law-and-order situation in the state due to the alleged atrocities of the TDP-led government.
“We will be holding a peaceful protest in New Delhi on the 24th of this month (July) the coming Wednesday. This is to draw the nation’s attention to the lawlessness and anarchy that have plagued Andhra Pradesh in the 45 days since the (N) Chandrababu Naidu regime has come to power, ” Reddy said in a post on social media platform X.
YSRCP MLAs, MPs and MLCs will take part in the New Delhi protest.
The former chief minister alleged that the new regime of the TDP, BJP and Janasena is “trying to kill democracy in the state” and vowed that the YSRCP will not stand for it.
According to Reddy, 36 political murders and 300 murder attempts occurred within two months of Naidu coming to power. He claimed that 37 individuals have also died by suicide due to alleged harassment by the TDP and said the conditions demand President’s rule in the state.
On Friday, the YSRCP chief went to Vinukonda in Palnadu district to visit the family of slain party activist Sheik Rashid who was murdered in the middle of a road on Wednesday night.
The YSRCP has alleged that the murder suspect, Sheik Jilani, is an active member of the Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP — a claim denied by the ruling party.
Talking to reporters outside Rashid’s home, Reddy alleged that the police lied about the murder claiming there was no political motive behind it but only “personal grounds”.
He termed Rashid’s murder a “deliberate act to instill fear across the state” and accused the police of failing to take action against the perpetrators and instead allegedly targeting the victims.
Demanding an apology from Naidu, Reddy said the state government must protect those who did not vote for the TDP.
Further, the opposition party alleged that Reddy’s convoy enroute to Vinukonda was halted at 15 places, causing it significant delays, adding that only a limited number of vehicles were permitted.
Incidentally, Reddy was also compelled to change his car as the bulletproof vehicle allotted to him malfunctioned on Mangalagiri highway.
“The TDP government allocated an old bulletproof vehicle to YSRCP president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. During his visit to Vinukonda, the bulletproof vehicle broke down. The air conditioning in the vehicle was not working. Jagan immediately switched to a private vehicle,” said YSRCP in a press release.
Moreover, the party alleged that the NDA government suddenly downsized Reddy’s security from the eve of his Vinukonda visit.
However, TDP rebutted these allegations by claiming that the former CM’s security detail is 1,000 guards strong.
“This is more than the security of even the president of the USA. In the interest of rationalising security and prioritising regular police work to benefit the common citizens, it has been reduced,” a TDP source told PTI.
According to TDP, Reddy’s convoy consisted of 10 Toyota Prado vehicles, with each one costing Rs 2 crore but now those cars have been set aside for visiting foreign dignitaries.
Observing that even Naidu doesn’t use Toyota Prado cars, the TDP source highlighted that Reddy has been allotted Tata Safari cars same as the ones used by the TDP chief as a leader of opposition.
“In fact, when Naidu comes to Delhi, he still uses a convoy of Tata Safari cars, ” the source added.
