Corruption in the State reached its peak during the YSRCP rule, and the aqua sector caught in the clutches of Chief Minister, Jagan Mohan Reddy, and other ruling party leaders, said TDP politburo member, Bonda Ummaheswara Rao, here on Friday.

Umamaheswara Rao told media persons that seed, feed, and export companies are being terrorised to pay ‘J’ tax amounting to Rs 5,000 cr per annum. The aqua farmer, who is investing Rs 300 per kg on an average, must resort to distress sale at Rs 170 per kg suffering huge losses, he added.

The aqua farming has reached to such a stage that a crop holiday must be announced now, Bonda Uma said, adding that the aqua farmers are being looted in the name of the committee that is appointed for their welfare. Corruption by the YSRCP leaders and the ‘J’ tax are destroying the sector, he stated.

After Jagan Mohan Reddy became the Chief Minister, every sector is facing deep trouble, Bonda Uma said, stating that even the cinema theatres are facing closure since the exhibitors and the distributors are being threatened. Observing that the party in power should encourage any sector not only to provide employment but also to generate revenue, Jagan Mohan Reddy is demolishing every field.

Aided colleges and schools are no exception, he said and added that attempts are being made to illegally occupy assets worth Rs 10,000 cr of the aided colleges. The assets of the Loyola College and the properties of a church in Visakhapatnam are under threat, Umamaheswara Rao stated.

Lakhs of families dependent on aqua farming are now facing a serious threat of losing employment, he observed. Jagan never fulfilled even a single promise made to the people of the State and the ruling party leaders know only how to make money through illegal means, he remarked.