On the 300th day of “Save Amaravati”, agitation, TDP national general secretary and former Minister Nara Lokesh visited the protest camps of farmers, rythu coolies and women in the villages in Thullur mandal and the expressed party’s solidarity to their demand for ‘One State, One Capital’.
Mr. Lokesh was accompanied by Member of Parliament, Guntur, Galla Jayadev and former Tadikonda MLA Tenali Sravan Kumar, as he joined the protests at Venkatapalem and Penumaka villages.
Alleging that Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy had been trying to kill the “baby capital” of Andhra Pradesh in utter disregard for the rights and sacrifices of farmers who gave away 34,000 acres in response to a call given by the then Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Mr. Lokesh said the Amaravati region was selected in tune with the wishes of all people of the State.
“Even Mr. Jagan spoke in favour of Amaravati selection on the floor of the Assembly in his capacity as Opposition Leader at that time,” he said.
Addressing protesters at Penumaka, Mr. Lokesh said it was Mr. Jagan, who, in fact, demanded an equidistant new Capital to North Andhra and Rayalaseema in over 30,000 acres where there would be no water shortage, and Amaravati had met all these parameters.
“Mr. Jagan, who approved Amaravati while in Opposition and even made people believe in that stand, completely changed his stance and started shifting Capital after coming to power,’’ allegedMr. Lokesh.
Stating that Mr. Jagan was incapable of bringing development, Mr. Lokesh pointed out that not even a single industry had come up in Visakhapatnam and North Andhra, and the rest of the State in the past 17 months. What more, the port city had become witness to unchecked land grabs and private settlements with law and order problems, he alleged.
