VIJAYAWADA: Social activist and writer professor Kancha Ilaiah has said he is not against the capital Amaravati. He also extended his support to the people who are fighting against the Centre for achieving Special Category Status (SCS) to AP.
He was speaking as a chief guest at a session — Protection of opportunities, rights and laws of oppressed classes — organised by the Dalit Bahujan Front here on Sunday. Speaking to reporters on the occasion, he blamed the BJP for not fulfilling the assurances made by the Centre on SCS.
Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Ilaiah said that unmarried people were unfit for ruling and opined they were a threat to development. He also found fault with Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on the SCS issue.
“Sanyasis like Narendra Modi and Adityanath are unfit to rule. While the corruption in the Congress regime is confined to individuals, the BJP government took it to next level by encouraging institutionalised corruption, targeting banks mostly. How could the BJP get party fund worth Rs 1,300 crore, an eightfold increase from the 2014 elections?” he sought to know.
He also alleged that the BJP was trying to make Telangana capital Hyderabad a Union Territory (UT) and second capital of India by shifting some offices from New Delhi. “I have information that this (BJP) party is trying to occupy the historic city. We have to stop them from doing so by giving a fitting reply in the 2019 elections by rejecting the BJP and its alliances,” he said.
He also appreciated Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu for breaking ties with the BJP and his proposed hunger strike on April 20.
Ilaiah said a new platform should be created with the ideas of BR Ambedkar, Jyotirao Phule, Savitribai and Karl Marx to protect the rights of SCs, STs and BCs.
“Like T-Mass in Telangana (Telangana Mass Organisations Association), there is a need to form an A-Mass to protect the rights of BCs, SCs, STs and minorities,” he said. Centre for Social Justice convenor Y Koteswara Rao, Dalit Bahujan Front national secretary M Bhagya Rao, BC International Welfare Association general secretary Nammi Appa Rao and other leaders participated in the session.