Close on the heels of getting funds released for the facelift of Barashahid Dargah and for a mosque, suspended YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) MLA Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy on May 2 (Tuesday) launched a protest to bring pressure on the State government for funds for a Christian community hall in Nellore.
Despite Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy giving a green signal for the ₹6 crore proposal, the community hall is yet to be materialised, he told the media here.
The Chief Minister cleared the proposal on June 10, 2019 soon after coming to power, he recalled, adding that he gave approval to it again on February 3, 2021 and once again on July 27, 2022.
However, the Finance Department did not release the funds for the purpose for some unknown reasons even as I ran from pillar to post seeking the intervention of the officials at various levels, including the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), which had also written to the Principal Secretary, Minorities Welfare,” said Mr. Sridhar Reddy.
He announced that the pastors would participate in the protest, apart from a post card and social media campaign from May 8 to pressure the government to fulfil the long-pending demand of Christians for a function hall at Gandhinagar in Nellore.
If there was no positive response from the government by May 18, then bricks would be mobilised from different Churches in the city, marking the community’s resolve to construct the community hall at any cost.