Support no-trust move : YSRCP chief to Naidu

     Describing as “people's victory” the Telugu Desam Party’s decision to pull out its Ministers from the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government at the Centre, YSR Congress Party president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday asked Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu to quit as NDA convener as well and join hands with his party to move the no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi governement for not granting Special Category Status to the State.

Throwing the gauntlet at Mr. Naidu, Mr. Reddy, who is on a State-wide Praja Sankalpa Padayatra, wanted Mr. Naidu to prove his “sincerity” by backing the no-trust motion to be moved by his party on March 21. “If it has any qualms, we are ready to support a TDP-moved no-trust motion,” he said.

“We are ready to advance the date for moving the motion if any other party suggests. In any case, my party will go ahead with tabling the motion irrespective of whether any party supports it or not,” he told the media before resuming his walkathon from Santaravuru village in Prakasam district.

As a last resort, all MPs from the State should be prepared to put in their papers on the last day of the ongoing Budget session of Parliament to highlight the injustice meted out to the State by the Congress and the BJP, “which joined hands to divide united Andhra Pradesh against the wishes of Seemandra people”, he said.

Replying to a question, he ruled out his party backing the efforts of Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhara Rao in the present juncture to float a front to take on both the Congress-led UPA and the NDA in the next Lok Sabha elections.

He denied the charge that his party was preparing the ground for striking an alliance with the BJP once the TDP snapped its ties with it.

“If it is so how will my party move a no-confidence motion in the first place?” he asked.

“Our strategy for the next elections will be to support any party at the Centre which offers to deliver SCS, which was a pre-condition for bifurcating united Andhra Pradesh,” he said, adding the people should give his party all the 25 MP seats to improve the bargaining strength with the front forming the government at the Centre after the next elections.

Asked whether his party would go it alone or have a truck with like-minded parties, he said “Nothing can be said now as the political situation is very fluid.”

There was nothing new in the Centre’s stand. Had Mr. Naidu threatened to walk out of the NDA government earlier, the State would have got SCS now, he felt, adding that Mr. Naidu had changed his stand in favour of SCS after settling for Special Assistance, sensing the wrath of the people.

Disputing Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s reported reiteration that 14th Finance Commission recommendations came in the way of the Centre granting SCS to the State, he said the State was formed when the 13th Finance Commission recommendations were in force. Moreover, 14th Finance Commission member Abhijit Sen had stated in writing that the Commission had not recommended abolition of SCS to any State.