AP Opposition Leader and former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday came down heavily on the Jaganmohan Reddy government for remaining indifferent to the all-party call for Rs. 5,000 assistance to help poor families tide over the difficult Coronavirus crisis.
Mr. Naidu said that ironically, at a time when Prime Minister Modi has given a call to feed at least five persons, the YSRCP government in Andhra Pradesh has not bothered to make such efforts by initiating steps like reopening Anna Canteens.
Mr Naidu condemned the removal of N. Ramesh Kumar from State Election Commissioner’s post despite the fact that he saved the people of Andhra Pradesh from Coronavirus epidemic threat by timely postponement of the local body elections.
He said that Ramesh Kumar was undemocratically and unceremoniously eased out of SEC position which was reprehensible and against the letter and spirit of the Constitution.
Mr. Naidu expressed concern over CM YS Jaganmohan Reddy’s ‘atrocious attitude’ that his government would only care about petty political games rather than the precious lives of the people of the state. The head of a Constitutional body was expelled with utter disregard for established conventions and practices. Taking political advantage out of everything seems to be the driving force for the Chief Minister.
Mr. Naidu accused the YSRCP government of turning the COVID-19 quarantine into a farce going by how the ruling party leaders are freely breaking lockdown everywhere. No isolation procedures were followed for SEC Kanagaraj who came from Chennai and for contractors who arrived from Hyderabad. But, common people and migrant labourers were put to untold hardships on inter-state borders, which the TDP is condemning categorically.
Mr. Naidu slammed the government for removing SEC over elections postponement, for suspending a doctor for requesting masks, for suspending a municipal commissioner for exposing lack of funds and not giving personal protection equipment (PPEs) to the frontline warriors in virus fight. The government’s failure was behind Capital City area, Guntur and Krishna districts classified as virus red zones. Vijayawada is a clear example of how suppression of a COVID-19 death would lead to faster spread of the dreaded virus.
Accusing CM Jagan of deliberately giving misleading information to PM Modi , Mr. Naidu said that taking mandal as criterion instead of district for assessing COVID-19 impact was a malicious act. Even during lockdown, YSRCP leaders are doing illegal mining in many districts. Hundreds of tractors are transporting gravel, soil and sand in Pithapuram and Peddapuram assembly segments.
Mr. Naidu demanded dismissal of Deputy Chief Minister K Narayana Swamy for his objectionable comments ‘Corona was spreading as muslims licked scraps of foods on used plates and spoons’. It is not good to attribute virus transmission to any religion. The YSRCP is behaving atrociously towards the minorities.
Mr. Naidu appealed to the people to celebrate Dr. BR Ambedkar jayanthi by garlanding his photos at their respective homes itself tomorrow. Everybody should condemn the YSRCP atrocities against the dalits as evident from suspension of a doctor, forcible taking over of assignment lands and also diversion of SC funds.
Mr Naidu said that all parties except YSRCP has demanded Rs. 5,000 for poor families considering the deteriorating virus situation and continuing lockdown restrictions. He lauded Vijayawada East MLA Gadden Rammohan and Gadde Anuradha for observing day-long protest deeksha for assistance to labourers who lost work. Former MLA Tangirala Soumya had also observed protest against cases filed against the Capital City farmers and women.
Mr. Naidu appealed to the government to control price rise as the common people are suffering on account of skyrocketing prices of pulses, oils and vegetables in the past 10 days. Under one pretext or other, Rs 1000 and ration was denied to 18 lakh ration card holders.
Stating that the COVID-19 situation is worsening in the state, Mr. Naidu observed that cases rose by 182 per cent in the past 10 days in the state while Kurnool witnessed an 8,300 per cent rise as against 650 per cent rise in Anantapur and 310 per cent in Guntur. He expressed concern over lesser testing in AP considering only 161 persons tested per 10 lakh in the state when compared to 428 in Kerala, 582 in Delhi, 360 in Maharashtra and 413 in Rajasthan.
