Congress will give Special Category Status to AP: Oommen Chandy

Ongole: All India Congress Committee general secretary and former Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said that the Congress party will give Special Category Status (SCS) to Andhra Pradesh.

Participating in the Congress party workers meeting, along with PCC chief N Raghuveera Reddy, here on Wednesday, Oommen Chandy said the SCS was the commitment and promise of Manmohan Singh as the Prime Minister made in Parliament.

Any government formed later either the UPA or NDA must implement the promise of earlier Prime Minister, he said. Stating that the NDA government had failed in keeping poll promises, he hoped that the Congress will come to power in the ensuing elections and assured that they would give SCS to Andhra Pradesh.

Chandy announced that they were planning to reorganise the party cadre from grass-route level and form village, mandal, district committees by October 2 to strengthen the party.

Earlier, Oommen Chandy and Raghuveera Reddy conducted a meeting with the workers and reviewed the party position in all the Assembly constituencies in the district.

Later, Chandy visited the family members of freedom fighter Karavadi Venkateswarlu, who died recently. Senior leaders Lingisetty Eeswara Rao, Gade Lakshma Reddy, former Union minister Panabaka Lakshmi accompanied Oommen Chandy.