The YSR Congress Party has deferred the proposed indefinite fast by the party president Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy to commence on Saturday at Guntur demanding special category status for Andhra Pradesh.
The party’s political advisory committee took a decision to this effect after the High Court of Hyderabad refused to hear the House Motion petition moved by the YSRC asking it to direct the Government to allow indefinite fast. The YSRC moved the petition as it was a holiday to the court on Friday on account of Bakrid, but the party was asked to file a regular petition.
“We will approach the court again on Monday. We are hopeful that the court will give permission to the Deeksha as it is part of the democratic process,” PAC member and YSRC deputy floor leader in the Assembly P. Ramachandra Reddy said. The YSRC would announce the fresh date for the Deeksha and the course of action that would be adopted by the party once the court gives its verdict on the issue on Monday.
Mr. Jagan’s proposed Deeksha was threatening to snowball into a major controversy with the Government firm on not granting permission for staging the protest. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu himself refused permission for the protest on the ground that the “Government cannot accord permission to individuals who seek approval to sit on fast and starve themselves”.
Mr. Ramachandra Reddy criticised the State Government for denying permission to Mr. Jagan. The denial of permission, Mr. Ramachandra Reddy said, exposed how Mr. Naidu was afraid of the consequences of the proposed indefinite fast. “Mr. Naidu should have accorded the permission for the deeksha as it will mount pressure on the Central Government to accord special category status to the State,” he said.
He alleged that the efforts to stall the democratic protests indicated that Mr. Naidu himself was opposed to the idea of according to special category status to the State. Mr. Naidu’s claims that special category status was not a panacea for the problems facing the State and the action initiated against a professor for airing his feelings in support of the special category status exposed that Mr. Naidu was the first person opposing the coveted status.
He faulted the Government for equating the special category status and the special assistance that was announced by the Central Government to the State. “How can both be equated? The benefits that accrue with the grant of special category status far outweigh the token measures like Rs.1,000-crore special assistance announced by the Central Government,” he said.
Mr. Ramachandra Reddy alleged that Mr. Naidu’s frequent visits to New Delhi were aimed at wriggling out of the cash-for-vote scandal in which the Chief Minister and his party legislator A. Revanth Reddy were caught red-handed.
