Ministers ridicule Jagan’s fast

Allege hunger strike aims to create hurdles in the way of development

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Ministers on Saturday lashed out at YSRCP chief Y S Jaganmohan Reddy for playing “obstructionist politics” and thus trying to create hurdles in the development of the State. Addressing separate press conferences here, the Ministers Prathipati Pulla Rao, Devineni Umamaheswara Rao and Peethala Sujatha ridiculed the two-day fast undertaken by Jaganmohan Reddy at Tanuku in West Godavari district.

While Pulla Rao called the hunger strike as a “weekend drama,” Umamaheswara Rao termed it as an act to create obstructions and trying to create hurdles in the way of development of the State. Pulla Rao demanded that Jaganmohan Reddy return the lands he had acquired on the cheap for Saraswathi Cement Factor to farmes and prove his credibility.

He pointed out that the irregularities took place during the YS Rajasekhara Reddy’s regime in which farmers were mistreated, while acquiring lands for Special Economic Zones. On his party, Umamaheswara Rao alleged that the two-day hunger strike by the YSRCP chief was nothing but to instigate farmers in Godavari districts to create hurdles to the proposed Pattiseema Lift Irrigation Project.

He pointed out that the government has been trying to build the proposed lift irrigation to bring Godavari water to save Krishna delta. He said that this would help in saving and diverting water at Srisailam to provide water to the drought prone ayalaseema. Taking similar line, Sujatha said that while the Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had been trying to bring in investments to boost the economy of the state, the YSRCP has been trying to obstruct the same.