The Telugu Desam Party’s (TDP) Andhra Pradesh president Kinjarapu Atchannaidu on Monday announced that the Yuva Galam Padayatra would be resumed within a week in Konaseema, where it was put on hold after the arrest of former Chief Minister and party national president N. Chandrababu Naidu.
On September 9, TDP national general secretary Nara Lokesh had put on hold the padayatra to assist his father, Mr. Naidu, in the legal battle in the ₹371-crore A.P. Skill Development project scam case in which he was imprisoned. On Monday, Mr. Atchannaidu, Mr. Naidu’s wife Ms. Bhuvaneswari and daughter-in-law Ms. Brahmani met Mr. Naidu in the Rajahmundry Central Prison through the ‘Mulaqat’ facility.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, Mr. Atchannaidu announced, “The Yuva Galam padayatra will be resumed within a week. All the permissions will be obtained from the government to proceed with the padayatra.”
Mr. Atchannaidu, however, did not specify who would lead the padayatra. It is expected that Ms. Brahmani would take up the reins, for which she is believed to have sought support from the cadres of the Jana Sena Party (JSP) in Konaseema.
Regarding Mr. Lokesh’s absence, Mr. Atchannaidu said the TDP leader was away in the national capital to fight the legal battle in the Supreme Court.
A word from prison
“During our meeting, Mr. Naidu directed us to intensify our fight against his arrest and ensure that everything falls in line in Andhra Pradesh. Mr. Naidu has observed that waging a spirited movement against the government is the only way ahead,” Mr. Atchannaidu said.
“We will take the party forward as per the directives of Mr. Naidu, who was arrested by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) without naming him in the First Information Report,” said Mr. Atchannaidu. On the course of action, Mr. Atchannaidu said, “The TDP party cadres right down to the grassroots have been directed to work together along with the cadres of the Jana Sena Party. The cadres have already started working together for the common goal of defeating the YSRCP.”
