Congress ultimatum to BJP on special status

Congress ultimatum to BJP on special status
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The Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) gave ultimatum to the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA government at the Center to grant special category status to the State during the current session of Parliament. The Congress leaders, who held a day-long protest here on Saturday, reiterated that the party

Guntur: The Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) gave ultimatum to the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA government at the Center to grant special category status to the State during the current session of Parliament. The Congress leaders, who held a day-long protest here on Saturday, reiterated that the party would not remain silent if the NDA government diluted the promises given to the State at the time of bifurcation.

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They also asked Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu to take an all-party delegation to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to represent on special category status to the State and other promises. The APCC president, N Raghuveera Reddy, that there was no compromise on getting every promise made to the State fulfilled and added that the provisions of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2013 too should be implemented in total.

APCC president N Raghuveera Reddy speaking at a Congress protest in Guntur on Saturday

He said the UPA government had made several promises to the State and several provisions were incorporated in the Act. “The promises and the provisions in the Act should be implemented without deviation or dilution,” Raghuveera Reddy asserted. The Congress leader said that the BJP had promised to extend the special category status for 10 years and special package to the backward districts of Rayalaseema and Uttarandhra.


Reminding that the BJP had also included these promises in the party election manifesto, he regretted that the party was now going back. He said that the Congress had already collected over 1.10 crore signatures from the people seeking special category status and would continue to involve people in getting the promises fulfilled.


The former Union minister and Rajya Sabha Member K Chiranjeevi criticised the Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu for being silent on getting special status to the State and other promises. He said the Reorganisation Bill had several benefits to the State which are to be made a reality. The Cabinet had approved all the promises, which the then Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh had made including special status during debate in Rajya Sabha, besides the Bill, he informed.


These promises were binding on the successive government, he said and added that the NDA government cannot escape from its responsibility. Chiranjeevi took a dig at the Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu for his silence on getting the provisions of the bill and the promises of the government fulfilled. He demanded that the Chief Minister lead an all-party delegation to the Prime Minister.

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