Chandrababu Naidu sees bid to benefit Gali Janardhan Reddy

Our Bureau

Amaravati: Lambasting the Central government for its apathy toward TDP protests and the indefinite hunger strike by Rajya Sabha member C M Ramesh and Mareddy Ravindranath Reddy (B. Tech Ravi) demanding steel plant in Kadapa, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu alleged that the Centre was delaying action on the project in order to benefit BJP leader Gali Janardhan Reddy and YSRCP president YS Jaganmohan Reddy.

He said the NDA government was trying to do undue favour to Gali Janardan Reddy by giving the plant to his mining company. He made these remarks during a teleconference with Kadapa leaders and MPs over the ongoing agitation on Monday.

He said the AP Reorganisation Act mandated the Central government to establish the plant through Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), a public sector undertaking. But the Centre was trying to give it to private firms and hence was delaying it, he added.

The state government was ready to lay a railway track (to the proposed project site) and provide power and water besides extending other incentives, he said and added that the state government had already reserved the iron ore mines for the plant. He recalled the ‘Visakha Ukku-Andhrula Hakku’ slogan of the 1960s led to establishment of a steel plant at Visakhapatnam.

“Now Kadapa Ukku-Andhrula Hakku (Kadapa steel plant is Andhras’ right) slogan should reverberate across the country and force the Centre to establish the plant in Kadapa district as promised in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014,” Naidu said.

The Chief Minister said the state government had written many letters to the Centre, seeking establishment of the plant and party MPs raised the issue in both Houses and he had personally requested the Prime Minister and Union ministers to set up the plant.

He lamented that despite all the please, the Centre now filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court saying the plant was not financially feasible. Training his guns on YSRCP chief Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, the Chief Minister accused him of mortgaging the interests of Kadapa people and supporting Gali Janardhan Reddy at their expense.

“While TDP leaders are sincerely fighting against the Central government for the cause of steel plant, the YSRCP leaders are staging fake agitations just for public consumption. Their protests are having no impact on the Central government, since YSRCP president has not even uttered a word blaming the Prime Minister directly for denying steel plant for Kadapa district,” he said.

The collusive politics of three parties, BJP, YSRCP and Jana Sena, will be explained to the people , he said and declared that TDP would fight against the Centre till it fulfil all the 19 promises made under AP Reorganisation Act.