Òppn. parties express solidarity with Amaravati farmers as protest reaches 1,200 days

Almost all the main political parties, except the YSR Congress Party, on Friday extended their unconditional support to the Amaravati farmers on the occasion of completion of 1,200 days of continuous protest

Almost all the main political parties, except the YSR Congress Party, on Friday extended their unconditional support to the Amaravati farmers on the occasion of completion of 1,200 days of continuous protest against the State government’s decision of having three capitals for the State.

MLA Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy, BJP national secretary Satya Kumar, former Minister Adinarayana Reddy, APCC president Gidugu Rudra Raju, working president Sunkara Padma Sri, TDP leaders Kanna Lakshminarayana and Panchumarthi Anuradha, the newly elected MLC, were among those who participated in the agitation at Mandadam village and expressed their solidarity with the farmers.

Mr. Sridhar Reddy said that the YSRCP had started harassing him since he extended support to the Amaravati farmers in Nellore district during their Padayatra from Nyayastanam to Devastanam (court to temple).

He said that those who support Amaravati as the capital only they would sustain in the ensuing General and Assembly elections and the YSRCP would be defeated. 

Ms. Anuradha observed that realisation had not dawned on Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy even after the defeat in the graduate MLC elections. She alleged that when the Amaravati women farmers went for Padayatra, the State government removed the toilets at the camps. She said that each and every one from the TDP would continue their support for Amaravati as the lone capital.

Mr. Rudra Raju reiterated that the Congress Party is committed to developing Amaravati as the only capital city and Rahul Gandhi also supported it. Ms. Padma Sri said that the farmers in 29 villages had made sacrifices for the five crore people of Andhra Pradesh by giving away 34,000 acres of land to the State government for construction of the capital.

Though it was proved that it was not a scam, the ruling YSRCP leaders were making corruption allegations only for political gain with vested interests, she criticised. The Chief Minister was intentionally harassing the farmers, she alleged, adding both State and Union governments were doing injustice to Amaravati. She demanded that the Central government construct its offices here as promised.