Telugu Desam Party MLAs on Thursday accused the YSR Congress Party of raising the bogey of Amaravati land scam once again to divert people’s attention from their inadequacies.
Addressing the media after being suspended from the Legislative Assembly on the first day of the monsoon session, senior TDP leader and PAC Chairman Payyavula Keshav said the ruling party once again tried to sling mud at the opposition party leaders by “repeating its baseless accusations.”
Referring to the ruling party leaders’ allegation that the TDP leaders bought vast stretches of lands in Amaravati as they knew that the place would become the capital of the bifurcated State, Mr. Keshav asserted that documents would prove that the lands had been bought one and half months after the then Chief Minister announced in the Assembly that the new capital would be located in Amaravati.
He said charges of “insider trading” were made against them and cases were framed against people who sold and bought the land.
“We were harassed for three years until the High Court quashed the case. The YSRCP leaders moved the Supreme Court, which also gave the verdict in our favour,” he said, adding that Finance Minister Buggana Rajendranath Reddy was now accusing the TDP leaders of being involved in the “SC, ST land scam.”
He demanded that the government order a probe into land transactions carried out in Visakhapatnam in the last three years.
Reiterating that the courts had given the TDP clean chits, Mr. Keshav said people could see through the ruling party’s game plan, and they would teach them a fitting lesson.
Farmers’ padayatra
The MLAs also took exception to the remarks made by some of the Ministers in the State against the farmers’ padayatra, and said they were disrespectful to the entire farming community.
They said the tremendous response to the farmers’ yatra was a reflection of the people’s desire that Amaravati be retained as the sole capital of the State.
Finding fault with the government for raising the three-capital issue in the Assembly, they reminded that the issue was pending in court and said it would not be possible for the government to shift the capital out of Amaravati.
TDP State president K. Atchannaidu was present.
