TDP chief Naidu sits on 36-hour deeksha protesting 'state-sponsored terrorism', slams AP CM, DGP
VIJAYAWADA: Opposition Leader and TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday held Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and Director General of Police D Gautam Sawang responsible for the attack on his party office at Mangalagiri on Tuesday evening and asserted that the attack was ‘State- sponsored’ and an assault on democracy. The TDP chief demanded that the Union government intervene in the matter to save people of Andhra Pradesh from the drug mafia and the ‘undemocratic’ and ‘fascist’ YSRC regime.
Naidu launched his 36-hour Prabhutva Ugravadampai Poru (Fight against government-sponsored terrorism) at the party central office denouncing the attacks on TDP offices and residences of party leaders allegedly by the ruling YSRC cadres. The Deeksha which began at 8 am on Thursday, will conclude at 8 pm on Friday.He alleged that the attack on the TDP office was pre-planned and aimed at rooting out the party in the State.
Reiterating his demand for invoking Article 356 since AP, in its present situation, was a fit case for imposition of the President’s rule, Naidu said though the TDP had never made such a demand in the past, it was forced to come up with the demand as lapses of the Jagan regime crossed all the limits. The future of the whole State and the country was at stake now, he observed.
Addressing TDP activists, Naidu alleged that the AP ganja mafia spread its tentacles to Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and other States. “The youth of the country and the whole generation would get devitalised and enervated if it was not protected from the internal aggression by the drug mafia,” he observed.
He mentioned Hyderabad City Police Commissioner’s reported references that ganja was being smuggled from Narsipatnam, Paderu, Sileru and other places in Andhra Pradesh to Telangana. After this, Telangana Chief Minister went on to vow to make their State drug-free. The Central agencies seized 3,000 kg of heroin at Mundra port, while it was being transported in the name of a Vijayawada firm.
Wherever ganja was seized in the country, its origin was traced to AP. Ganja worth `8,000 crore was being cultivated in over 25,000 acres in the State. The mafia was using exclusive WhatsApp groups to deliver ganja all over the country, he alleged
Underlining the need to save democratic spirit, Naidu said he had seen many CMs, but Jagan is strange and characterless and causing irreparable damage and destruction in the State. Taking a dig at the ruling YSRC leaders making a hue and cry over TDP spokesperson K Pattabhiram’s remarks, Naidu said it was the CM and his party which were whipping up passions on caste and religious lines to gain political mileage. “Can the ruling party leaders come for a debate on the use of abusive language,’’ he challenged.
The Opposition Leader reiterated that the TDP will take every initiative to safeguard democracy in the State and appealed to the people to extend their support to the party in the interest of the future generations.