Pawar’s Powerful Counter To AP CM YS Jagan

NCP president Sharad Pawar was astonished to know that Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy proposed to construct three capitals even when Andhra Pradesh was a much smaller state than Maharashtra, which has two capitals – Mumbai and Vidarbha. However, there is not much development in Vidarbha, he said.

He was speaking to a team of farmers belonging to Amaravati Capital Region who met him in Delhi. The farmers apprised him of the situation in the state and the protest they had been staging for more than 800 days demanding that Amaravati be declared the lone capital of the state. Pawar also wondered how Jagan would be able to build three capitals even while not being able to take up development works in Amaravati, named as the capital of Andhra Pradesh a few years ago.

Former Union Minister Renuka Chowdary and Andhra Pradesh Mahila Congress leader Sunkara Padma headed the team of farmers and spoke to Pawar for more than half-an-hour. When the farmers told him about their protest, Pawar asked them from where was Jagan ruling the state. Is he working from Hyderabad, he asked to which the farmers replied that he was functioning from the legislative house and Secretariat built by the TDP government.

The farmers informed Pawar that Jagan agreed to have Amaravati as the capital when he was the opposition leader but now, changed his stance and even violated the CRDA norms. When they told Pawar about their protest for the last two years and how Jagan was remaining was non-chalant towards the issue, he was taken aback. The farmers also informed him that they were being humiliated and also caned for protesting against the CM’s decision.

To this, Pawar asked them what was the opposition doing in the Assembly and the farmers told him that the opposition parties were reduced to a zero with many of the MLAs being pulled into the YCP fold. The voice of the remaining few opposition leaders is being muzzled, the farmers told Pawar.

At this point, the NCP chief told the farmers that TDP president and former CM N. Chandrababu Naidu explained him about the concept of land pooling for the new capital. “It is really a very good concept and pooling more than 30,000 acres for a capital is really commendable. It is a good idea,” he said and at the same time, expressed dissatisfaction and disappointment over idea to change the capital after taking up works worth Rs 10,000 crore.

Speaking about the financial condition of Andhra Pradesh, Pawar expressed doubt on how would Jagan build three capitals while not being able develop a single capital. The farmers told Pawar that they had approached the court and that the court had asked the YCP government to develop Amaravati as the capital city and also the plots given by the farmers for the capital.

When Pawar asked the farmers about the CM’s reaction to the verdict, they informed him that he was remaining non-chalant. Pawar reportedly was surprised how could the CM set aside the court order.

Informing Pawar about the BJP stand, the farmers told him that the party leaders in the state were supporting them but that the Centre was not taking a proper stand. The farmers told media that Pawar had promised that their party MPs would stand in support of Amaravati in the Parliament.