Withdraw 3 Capitals or dissolve Assembly: Chandrababu Naidu tells Andhra CM Jagan Reddy

Naveen S Garewal
Tribune News Service
Hyderabad, August 3

Telugu Desam Party (TDP) National President and former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu gave an ultimatum to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy to withdraw his “3 Capitals” decision within 48 hours or abolish the state legislative assembly to seek fresh public mandate on his decision for trifurcation.

Naidu reminded Jagan Reddy that he and his party leaders had promised the people of Andhra in the 2019 election campaign that Amaravati would continue to be the only capital city and that it would be fully developed. After making that promise, the chief minister has no right to shift Amaravati Capital without the approval of the five crore people of the state, he said.

Addressing a press conference Chandrababu Naidu dared the Andhra Chief Minister to seek a fresh mandate if he had courage and if he was fully confident of having total approval of the people for his “3 Capitals” plan.

“If the people vote for and bring the YSRCP back to power in the re-election, then the TDP would humbly accept their mandate and it would not raise its dissenting voice again against the decision. If the CM does not come out with a proper response, the TDP along with the other Opposition parties would intensify their agitation not just through legal battles but also make the chief minister a culprit in the people’s court,” he said.

The TDP chief listed out how the YSRCP leaders made the innocent voters of Andhra believe that the idea to make Amaravati the state’s capital would not be destroyed even if Jagan Reddy was made the chief minister in 2019.

“But, after coming to power, the CM backstabbed and betrayed all the 5 crore people of the state by going ahead with his capital shifting without discussing or taking prior approval of the people. Jagan Reddy himself repeatedly uttered the election slogan that he would never break his promises and that he would worship his party manifesto like the Bible, the Bhagavad Gita and the Quran. Having sworn on the holy books, the Chief Minister was now relentlessly breaking his promises without any conscience,” he said.

Naidu recalled how YSRCP’s 2019 Election Manifesto Committee Chairman Ummareddy Venkateswarlu repeatedly assured the people at that time that their party would continue Andhra Capital in Amaravati alone and it would be developed into a good and well-equipped city. Incidentally, Ummareddy Venkateswarlu hails from the Guntur, the district where Amaravati is located. YSRCP Mylavaram MLA Vasanta Krishna Prasad went to the extent of taking a vow that he would resign if Amaravati was discontinued as a permanent capital. Krishna Prasad hails from Krishna district, which is close to Amaravati.