Jagan asks YSRCP MPs to raise public issues in Parliament

Amaravati, July 16 (IANS) Former Chief Minister and YSR Congress Party President Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy said governance in Andhra Pradesh has completely collapsed under Chandrababu Naidu and directed YSRCP MPs to strongly raise people’s issues, corruption, illegal cases, farmer distress, employee problems, rising debt and scams in both Houses of Parliament during the Monsoon Session beginning July 20.

Jagan chaired the YSR Congress Parliamentary Party meeting at the party’s central office in Tadepalli to discuss the strategy to be adopted in Parliament.

The meeting was attended by YSRCP Parliamentary Party leader and Rajya Sabha MP V.Y. Subba Reddy, Rajya Sabha MPs Meda Raghunath Reddy and Golla Baburao, YSRCP floor leader in Lok Sabha Peddireddy Mithun Reddy, Lok Sabha MPs M. Gurumoorthy, Y.S. Avinash Reddy and Gumma Tanuja Rani. Former MPs Pilli Subhash Chandra Bose and Alla Ayodhya Rami Reddy attended as special invitees.

Addressing the MPs, Jagan said that the interests of the people of Andhra Pradesh must remain the party’s foremost priority and urged them to raise their voices forcefully in Parliament. He reiterated YSRCP’s support for the Women’s Reservation Bill and said the party stands by its earlier position.

He said governance in the State has been thrown to the winds, and scams are visible everywhere, with DSC 2025 emerging as a major recruitment scandal.

Jagan said serious irregularities had occurred in the filling of DSC posts, including appointments made before candidates even wrote the competitive examination. He said several issues had also emerged regarding DSC question paper leaks and serious irregularities in sports quota appointments. Government Orders were issued only to benefit favoured persons and were cancelled once their purpose was served, he said.

He pointed out that the sports associations that issued certificates were also in the hands of ruling party leaders, citing the Softball Association, headed by TDP MLA Kuna Ravi Kumar, and the Judo Association, where Visakhapatnam MP and Lokesh’s brother-in-law, Bharath, is Honorary President.

He said land allotments across the State had become arbitrary and corrupt. Nearly Rs 5,000 crore worth of government lands were handed over to Minister Lokesh’s brother-in-law for a pittance, he said, calling it a grave act of corruption.

He said massive loot was taking place in Amaravati construction, with costs exceeding Rs 20,000 per square foot, a rate unheard of anywhere in the country.

He said roads, too, had become a source of loot, while farmers who refused to give up their land under pooling were being harassed and their land forcibly taken. Farmers are questioning why more land is being acquired when even the thousands of acres already taken remain undeveloped, he said.

Jagan said those exposing government failures or questioning the ruling party were being harassed with false cases and arrests. In the name of social media, Chandrababu is unleashing severe repression and arresting people at will, he said. He asked MPs to raise these attacks on democratic rights in Parliament.

He also directed MPs to take up the problems faced by teachers due to the mandatory TET requirement.

He said it is unfair to force teachers who entered service before TET was introduced to write the examination now, especially when they had already cleared competitive examinations at the time of recruitment. Teachers who have been teaching one subject for many years should not be compelled to write a TET covering all subjects, he said, asking MPs to meet the Union Minister concerned and present the issue.

Jagan said public assets in the State are being distributed like freebies to private parties. He strongly criticised the privatisation of ports, harbours, and other institutions, especially since many of these projects were initiated under the YSRCP government and are either completed or nearing completion.

He questioned how the nearly completed Ramayapatnam Port, worth around Rs 5,000 crore, could be handed over for just Rs 1,500 crore, asking whether this was not a major scam. If such revenue-generating assets are handed over to private parties, how will the State earn revenue, he asked.

He said the coalition government is setting debt records while corruption continues everywhere. Land is being allotted arbitrarily, while the sand, liquor, and mining sectors have become centres of organised loot. Mafias are operating in every sector, he said.

In just two years, the government has borrowed nearly Rs 3.6 lakh crore, violating the FRBM Act and borrowing without limits, yet nothing has been done for the people, he said.

Jagan said aqua farmers are suffering heavily due to syndicates, while farmers across the State are facing losses due to the absence of remunerative prices for any crop. The anger of aqua farmers was evident at the Bhimavaram meeting, where they openly expressed that they were being deceived, he said.

He also said government employees are facing severe problems, with no implementation of manifesto promises, no PRC, no IR, five DAs pending, surrender leaves pending, and every issue unresolved.

–IANS

ms/dan