Naidu Draws Flak For Thwarting Jan 26 Protests

Several leaders of the political spectrum including Jana Sena Party founder-chief Pawan Kalyan criticized Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu for ordering the State Police to stop the January 26-protests demanding Special Status (SS) for Andhra Pradesh, and recalled that Naidu himself had been promising to get SS for the State for over a decade.

Speaking at a Party rally, the actor-turned-politician rapped the TDP supremo for allegedly vacillating promises, actions and statements frequently. He also expressed suspicions that Naidu was merely swaying on the issue in whichever direction the BJP-led Centre told him to.

"The Chief Minister has been promising to get Special Status for long. He even argued in previous Assembly sessions about it. But he changes his mind as soon as the Union government commands him to. He quickly agreed on the special package that was offered instead of Special Status a few days after arguing in the monsoon session Of Parliament in 2016. This indecisiveness is causing citizens to lose faith in the establishment," the Jana Sena founder claimed.

He further claimed that the TDP was trying to saffronize the State by acting as a portal for the BJP to enter the AP vote bank.

Kalyan also held Prime Minister Narendra Modi responsible for thwarting the 26th Jan-protests, and claimed that the latter ordered Naidu to launch his Police forces on the peaceful protest.

"The Prime Minister and the Chief Minister together stopped the youth from demonstrating their opinions peacefully. The Ministers' actions are against the essence of our democratic Constitution which allows peaceful agitations. Such wanton use of force to curb dissent and civil rights sets ground for a larger upheaval," he warned.

The Jana Sena leader also alleged that on behalf of the Centre, Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu - a native of AP - worked against his own people by promoting the Centre's special package for AP. Venkaiah and Chandrababu Naidu were both acting as a bridge for the national BJP to enter AP politics and win the upcoming 2019 elections. But as long as the Centre and the ruling Party kept deceiving people, constructing large projects for personal benefits, evict farmers for those projects, go back on their promises, and stop dissent, the public is never going to vote for them, he added.

However, Kalyan said that his Party and the people would support the Naidu if he used his political experience and relations with the Centre to develop the State as well as its citizens.