YSR Congress Party’s Member of Legislative Council Varudu Kalyani on Sunday said the previous Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government, which held power in the State from 2014 to 2019, was to blame for the denial of Special Category Status.
“The TDP government had struck a compromise with the Union government for a so-called special package for the residual State of Andhra Pradesh,” Ms. Kalyani said.
She accused former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu of doing ‘maximum damage’ to A.P. with inconsistent policies during his regime.
Speaking to reporters here, Ms. Kalyani said that the Central government had continued its ‘stepmotherly attitude’ towards A.P. by removing the SCS issue from the agenda to be discussed by a sub-committee formed to look into the implementation of assurances in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act on February 17.
“How could the Union Home Ministry remove this important issue from the agenda in the evening after listing it in the morning? It is nothing but injustice to the State. Along with Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, we will continue to fight for SCS which will be a lifeline for the State,” said Ms. Kalyani.
“The Union government should continue allocation of funds for both the backward regions of north Andhra and Rayalaseema. Otherwise, speedy progress will not be possible in the near future,” she said.
