TDP leader and former MLA Tenali Sravan Kumar said the stay imposed on Thursday by the High Court on the construction of houses for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in the R-5 zone in Amaravati was a blow to the government and vindicated his party’s stand that the intention behind the project was to drive a wedge between Amaravati farmers and beneficiaries from outside the capital region.
In a press release on Thursday, Mr. Sravan Kumar said Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy made a conscious decision to proceed with the construction of the houses in spite of knowing the likely consequences of an adverse judgment by the High Court, to meet his political objectives.
He pointed out that the TDP government had provided 2,500 acres in the R-3 zone for the construction of houses for the poor but the Jagan Mohan Reddy government came up with the politically motivated idea of carving out the R-5 zone, which was a part of his premeditated plan to hamper the development of Amaravati.
The government could allot houses in the R-3 zone and give possession of the already built 5,200 TIDCO houses to the eligible poor if it was really concerned with the plight of the poor people but it did not do so, for which it owed an explanation. The TDP government had earmarked the lands in R-5 zone for IT companies but their purpose was defeated as the lands were proposed to be diverted for housing, Mr. Sravan Kumar expressed regret.
