Communist Party of India (CPI) senior leader K. Narayana on Saturday said that everyone, including leaders of the YSR Congress, wanted Amaravati to continue as the capital city of the State. However, the ruling party leaders were afraid of openly voicing their opinions, he alleged.
Addressing a roundtable meeting organised by the Amaravati Parirakshana Samithi Joint Action Committee (JAC) in the city, the CPI leader said that except for Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, none of his party leaders wanted the capital to be shifted out of Amaravati.
“If you want proof, conduct a narco-analysis test on them,” Mr. Narayana said in a lighter vein.
The CPI leader said that Mr. Jagan, in a way, had united his opponents. “The Communist parties and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had always been opponents. But today, we share a common platform for the cause of Amaravati,” he said.
He said that the fight against the decision will continue, and, “if the need arises, we will not hesitate to bring governance to a standstill in the State”.
Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader Varla Ramaiah launched a scathing attack on Minister Botcha Satyanarayana for his remarks that TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu would not be allowed to step into the north Andhra region. “We have never known the culture of hurling rotten eggs and footwear on leaders in the past,” he rued.
TDP leader Vangaveeti Radhakrishna wondered why Mr. Jagan cannot follow the precedent set by his father Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy in continuing the projects instituted by his predecessor, particularly the Hi-Tec City project.
Ex gratia sought
A resolution was adopted at the meeting demanding compensation for the families of farmers who had died during the Amaravati agitation, expansion of the JAC protest programmes across the State, and spreading their protests to Hyderabad.
The leaders decided to visit Delhi and meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other Central Ministers from March 3 to drum up support for the cause of Amaravati. Withdrawal of cases against women protesters and steps to stop misuse of SC/ST Act were among their other demands.
Leaders of TDP, CPI, CPI-M, Jana Sena Party, Congress, farmers and others participated.
