YSR Congress Party president Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday made it clear that there is no point in attending the Andhra Pradesh Assembly unless the status of Leader of Opposition is accorded to him. Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan asked the Assembly Speaker what was stopping him from giving opposition party status to the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), the only party in opposition in the House.
Responding to queries at a news conference here, he said that only the Leader of Opposition status would give him sufficient time to "expose mischievous deeds" of the coalition government. "The only party in opposition is the YSR Congress. All other parties are in the ruling government.
You should question the democracy of the Speaker. What is stopping the Speaker from giving it the status of an opposition party," he asked. The YSRCP leader's remarks came a day after Speaker Chintakayala Ayyanna Patrudu suggested "no work, no pay" for the MLAs who are not attending the Assembly.
He also mooted the proposal to give voters the 'Right to recall' such public representatives. The Speaker made the suggestions at the 86th All India Conference of Presiding Officers at Lucknow. All 11 MLAs of YSRCP have been skipping the Assembly since 2024.
Responding to a query on his padayatra, he said it is a political decision that will be taken when the timing is right and anti-incumbency peaks. At a party meeting on Wednesday, the YSRCP leader had said that they will undertake a padayatra after one year and will remain with the public on the roads for one year.
Jagan slammed Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu for what he called "credit chori" in the comprehensive land resurvey. He alleged that CM Chandrababu Naidu hijacked the comprehensive land survey undertaken by the YSRCP party government and resorted to "credit chori", despite having virtually no contribution to the herculean task of implementing the 'Bhu Raksha' (Land Rights) and 'Bhu Hakku' (Land Protection) schemes.
Recalling the origins of the initiative, he said that during his padayatra, farmers had poured out their woes over irregular land titles and disputes, an issue that was clearly mentioned in the 2019 manifesto. During the YSRCP party government's tenure, Rs 6,000 crore was spent, and nearly 40,000 staff were deployed to carry out comprehensive land reforms something no other government had managed by issuing clear land titles with advanced security features using high-end technology.
The initiative, he said, was appreciated far and wide. After assuming office, Chandrababu Naidu, who could never have imagined such a reform, allegedly took away Pattadar Passbooks from farmers, merely changed their colour, and returned them while claiming credit for the entire exercise.
Even the Rs 400 crore given by the Centre as a token of appreciation was, he alleged, "knocked away" by the TDP leadership, exposing the extent of 'credit chori'. The new Pattadar Passbooks being issued by the coalition government, he said, are riddled with errors, further increasing farmers' hardships.
The former Chief Minister said it was Chandrababu Naidu and his propaganda machinery that floated story after story just before the elections, claiming that lands would be taken away under the 'Bhu Hakku' and 'Bhu Rakshana' schemes. IVR calls were also made to scare farmers and urge them not to vote for the YSRCP. Such short-term political gains would not last long, as people have seen through the "dirty game", he said.
Jagan Mohan Reddy also accused the coalition government of rampant corruption, pointing to Sankranti gambling dens, liquor outlets in every village, and commissions flowing from top to bottom. Despite the doubling of sand prices, revenues have not increased, raising questions about where the money is going, he said. Contractors are allegedly being paid exorbitant rates for Amaravati works, with projects being awarded to a favoured few.