One of the many complaints against the previous YCP government was its tendency to encourage its leaders to abuse political opponents. In fact, YCP MLAs went so far as to speak ill of Chandrababu’s wife, Bhuvaneswari, right inside the Assembly. Figures like Posani Krishna Murali made disgraceful remarks about Pawan Kalyan’s daughter. This abusive political culture was nurtured and normalized under Jagan Mohan Reddy’s rule.
Cut to the present: the Chandrababu-led government in Andhra Pradesh is taking a firm stand against hate speech and the culture of abuse on social media. The government’s swift action—suspending a TDP activist for crossing the line—is a clear reflection of this new approach.
Here’s what happened: a man claiming to be a TDP supporter recently appeared in an interview and made derogatory comments about Jagan, Bharathi, Avinash, and even Jagan’s daughters.
Once this video surfaced on social media, there was widespread condemnation. Interestingly, even the TDP’s own social media wing denounced the behavior and called for strict action against the individual.
The matter quickly reached the TDP leadership and, within 12 hours of the video going viral, the party initiated disciplinary action. The man was immediately suspended from the party, with a clear message sent across that the TDP does not tolerate abuse against women—irrespective of political affiliations.
Furthermore, reports suggest that the Guntur Police may soon take the individual into custody. Though he released an apology video, the TDP high command took the incident seriously and found the apology inadequate.
During Jagan’s tenure as Chief Minister, his own MLAs—such as Vallabhaneni Vamsi and Kodali Nani—and spokespersons like Posani frequently launched personal attacks on Chandrababu’s family. Far from curbing these actions, the YCP leadership seemed to encourage and amplify them.
But under the current NDA-led government in Andhra Pradesh, the message is clear: no one is above accountability when it comes to abuse and indecency, even if they belong to the ruling party.
A TDP sympathizer pointed out that Jagan seemed to take pleasure in watching his leaders hurl personal attacks at Chandrababu’s family. In contrast, Chandrababu, true to his dignified statesmanship, ensured that even a low-level party worker was suspended and potentially arrested for insulting Jagan’s family.
This, they said, is a lesson in political maturity and leadership—something Jagan would do well to learn from a seasoned statesman like Chandrababu Naidu.