Minister for Education Botsa Satyanarayana has rubbished the remarks of Pawan Kalyan on Jagananna Housing Scheme (JHS) and said that he was reading out lines written by others.

Addressing a press conference on Monday, he said that late Chief Minister Dr YS Rajasekhar Reddy’s initiative was to build houses for the poor, and it is being carried forward by his son YS Jagan Mohan Reddy after coming to power through YSR Jagananna Housing Colonies.

In all, the government is building 30 lakh houses in the state to provide permanent houses to the poor.

A total of 71,811 acres of land was acquired in the state, of which 25,000 acres of private land was purchased for Rs 11,000 crore and Rs 3,400 crore spent for improving the infrastructure in the layouts. ‘’Pawan Kalyan’s words lack sanctity, and he should have evidence on the allegations. I am not considering Jana Sena as a political party. How can he allege Rs 15,000 crore scam in Jagananna Colonies, when the government has spent the same amount for purchasing the private land and improving infrastructure in the layouts’’, he questioned.

Pawan Kalyan should only speak constructively and with facts to get answers from the government, he said.

Commenting on the success of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Visakhapatnam, he said that it’s the responsibility of the state government to show its commitment to the Centre for allocating various development projects for the North Andhra region. During the public meeting, the Chief Minister also highlighted the promises made during the bifurcation of the state and plight of the Northern Andhra region. Jagan Mohan Reddy also made it clear that relationship with Centre and Prime Minister beyond politics and parties, the Minister said.