Naidu, Chiranjeevi War Over Kapu Reservations

The Telugu Desam and Congress parties are indulging in a slugfest over Mudragada Padmanabham's fast seeking the addition of the Kapu community to the BC list in Andhra Pradesh.

While former union minister and Congress leader K Chiranjeevi accused the Chief Minister of afraid of losing the Kapus' support to his government, Chandrababu Naidu strongly rebutted saying that the former had no moral right to talk on the issue.

Naidu ridiculed Chiranjeevi for dumping the Kapus who had supported him and merging his Prajarajyam party with the Congress. Chiranjeevi should say what he had done for the Kapus during his stint as union minister, the Chief Minister demanded. His government had initiated measures towards doing justice to the Kapus, he added.

On the other hand, Chiranjeevi and APCC president N Raghuveera Reddy fumed at the government for being taken into custody at the Rajahmundry airport and prevented from meeting the fasting Padmanabham. They alleged that Naidu was afraid of the Kapus distancing themselves from his government.

"Why is Chandrababu Naidu scared and preventing us from meeting the Kapu leader? We are not here to provoke or hurt the sentiments of anyone, and the government is stifling our voices. Naidu is adopting double standards and diverting the issue - when in the Opposition the TDP had conducted protests on the people's issues, and now is curtailing the efforts of the Opposition from doing so," Chiranjeevi alleged.

Naidu was not a committed leader, and was adopting a "divide-and-rule” policy, Chiranjeevi charged.