VIJAYAWADA: Minister for Information and Public Relations Perni Nani has lashed out at former Water Resources Minister Devineni Umamaheswara Rao for the latter’s comments against Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on the issue of pre-closure of tender awarded to Navayuga Engineering Company Limited to execute the Polavaram project.
Speaking to mediapersons, the minister found fault with the former minister for the language and the tone used by him while mentioning the Chief Minister and said they too could speak the same language, but were not doing so as they know how to conduct themselves in a dignified manner. He advised Devineni Uma to behave else he would stand exposed in public.
He also termed “unfortunate and irresponsible” the comments of Union Minister for Water Resources Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on cancellation of tenders for Polavaram project in Parliament. “They reflect the BJP’s aspiration to replace the TDP as the primary opponent of the YSRC in the State,” he said.
Nani said the Union Minister’s comments also reflect uneasiness among some BJP leaders as Jagan Mohan Reddy has initiated measures to tackle corruption in the State, while the same could not be done in the BJP-ruled States. “I am confident that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will support the decision of Jagan to go for reverse tendering. As no works can be done during flood time in Godavari which lasts till October, works will be restarted in November after calling fresh tenders,” he said.
The Machilipatnam MLA also took serious exception to TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and his son Nara Lokesh’s twitter posts on Machilipatnam port issue. He said it reflects the ill intentions of a senior leader with 40 years of experience and immaturity of his son, who served as minister of three departments.
He rubbished Lokesh’s “secret GO” remark and said there was nothing secret about the GO, which was issued for removing the additional charge given to Machilipatnam Port Officer Capt Sri Dharma Sastha. “It shows ignorance of the former IT minister. It was unfortunate that we had such a person as a minister,” he said.
The minister asserted that there was not an iota of truth in the claims of the TDP that works of Machilipatnam port were stalled. “Where is the question of stalling the works when they have not started in the first place?” he asked.