Telugu Desam Party (TDP) national president N. Chandrababu Naidu on Friday termed the House Committee’s probe into the Pegasus issue as a “farce,” and said it was ridiculous on the part of the YSRCP government to “intimidate me.”
Addressing a public meeting at Nagari, as part of his three-day ‘Badude Badudu’ campaign, Mr. Naidu said it was he who had ushered in the IT revolution in the State, and “none needs to teach me about IT.”
Challenging the House panel to prove the charges against him, Mr. Naidu said he would fear none, except the people.
Referring to the move of Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy to become the “permanent president of the YSRCP,” Mr. Naidu said such a step would only be preposterous and against the spirit of democracy.
Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s mother and sister were out of the party because of his “undemocratic thinking,” Mr. Naidu alleged.
Terming the government’s welfare schemes as “bogus and inflated,” Mr. Naidu demanded that Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy release the “true statistics” of the beneficiaries of Amma Vodi, Rythu Bharosa, and social pensions.
Alleging that Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy was destroying the system of education, he quoted a report of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) that the school dropouts in Andhra Pradesh were 35% in the recent years, while 51,000 teacher posts were left vacant.
Mr. Naidu further said while the SC sub-plan was watered down, the creation of BC corporations was just a show-off without funds, offices, and chairs.
Criticising Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy for “hoodwinking the farmers” with false promises during the 2019 elections, Mr. Naidu said, “The TDP, on coming to power, will permanently drop the move to fix smart meters to agriculture pumpsets.”
Referring to the crimes against women and minors in the last three years, Mr. Naidu said, “Crimes against women are increasing due to the liquor flow and ganja consumption. I challenge Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy to disprove my charges that the liquor brands had residues of hazardous chemicals.”
Making a mention of the hike in power tariffs, APSRTC bus fares, and skyrocketing prices of essential commodities, the TDP chief urged the public to revolt against the YSRCP government and bring the TDP back to power.
Earlier, the TDP chief was accorded a rousing reception on his arrival at Nagari town. TDP Chittoor parliamentary constituency in-charge Pulivarthi Nani, Nagari constituency in-charge Gali Bhanuprakash and senior party functionaries accompanied Mr. Naidu.
