With a ‘reverse walk’, Naidu berates Jagan govt for taking Andhra backwards

Mangalore Today News Network

Hyderabad, Dec 16, 2019: Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday walked backwards to the Andhra assembly along with his party’s legislators to demonstrate what he said the YSR Congress Party government was doing to the state.

Naidu, the leader of the opposition in the state assembly, accused the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP government of taking the state backwards rather than developing it, Hindustan Times reported.

 

He along with his party MLAs and MLCs led a procession from the fire station in the state secretariat premises to the assembly complex by walking backwards as the winter session of the state assembly resumed for the sixth day after a two-day break.

Naidu said the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRC government had cancelled all the contracts granted by the previous TDP government and entrusted the projects to selected contractors in the name of “reverse tendering.”

“The tenders were reserved for a few contractors. So, it is not reverse tendering, but a reserve tendering taken up by the Jagan government. That is why we are walking in a reverse direction,” he said while speaking to reporters.

The former chief minister also alleged that the YSRC government had virtually killed Amaravati, the capital city, which was worth Rs 2 lakh crore.

“What is going on in the state at present is a Tughlaq government and insane rule. There is no capital for the state and no industrialist is coming forward to invest in the state,” he pointed out.

The TDP also gave a notice for an adjournment motion in the state assembly on Monday to discuss the issue of “reverse administration” in the state.

The state assembly will discuss and pass as many as 13 bills, including that for the setting of separate commissions for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), an amendment to the excise act, the merger of RTC employees with the state government among other things.

There is also going to be a short-term discussion on new excise policy of the state government.

The winter session of the assembly, which will conclude on Tuesday, has witnessed intense debates so far over various issues like the soaring onion prices, farmers’ issues, gag order against media and increase of RTC bus fares.