Praja Sankalpa Yatra Diary, Day 125: Amaravati Under TDP Symbolises Corruption 

Perecherla, Guntur district: This morning during the course of my Padayatra, I came across another instance of the pervasive greed which marks the TDP regime. The ruthless, merciless ways of the ruling party leaders, came to the fore once again during my interaction with the members of a family of ex-servicemen at Medikonduru. Shabbirunnisa, an elderly woman met me. With great pride she announced that she was the wife of military Adam. She told me that her husband, Shaikh Adam, her son and grandson were all soldiers. They were proud of the fact that theirs was a family of soldiers dedicated to serving the nation. Her husband, Shaikh Adam, who had fought in the Indo-China conflict of 1962, had been wounded grievously and had earned military honours. They were allotted 2 acres and 59 cents of land which they have been using for agricultural purposes from 1969 onwards, paying taxes as required. Everything changed in the year 2015 shortly after the Telugu Desam party assumed office.

“Till that point no government had ever created any problems for us. No sooner had Chandrababu Naidu assumed office than our troubles began,” she lamented. “They targeted us because we were not TDP voters and began to act with vindictiveness against us. They snatched our land away from us under the Neeru-Chettu scheme. We got a stay order from the High Court, but the Janmabhoomi committees and officials dug up our field overnight and sold the sand. We did not get a rupee as compensation. My children now go out to do scaffolding work on construction sites.” She cursed Chandrababu Naidu and his government for the wickedness with which they acted against this family of soldiers. She said, “Your father’s regime was a golden period for us. We were given a house, could get fee reimbursement scheme for our children, and other benefits. Thanks to the fee reimbursement scheme, my granddaughter could complete her engineering course. We saw a great leader of the masses and chief minister like the late Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy who treated a soldier’s family with utmost respect and we now see the TDP government led by Chandrababu Naidu which drove us into the quicksands of poverty. With palpable anger she said, "The TDP government is petty, insensitive and vengeful.” Her words made me feel proud of the good work done by my father, and at the same time the difference in the approach and attitude of the present regime towards the masses, saddened me. This government knows only how to target the poor and the deprived.

I wondered if Chandrababu Naidu did not feel ashamed of taking away and digging up land belonging to Dalits, backward communities and even ex-servicemen. I recalled the slogan given by our late Prime Minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri, “Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan.” At the other end of the spectrum stood a leader like Chandrababu Naidu— who did not spare a second thought before forcibly snatching away land which belonged to a farmer or a soldier! In fact all of us ought to be proud of this family of soldiers and ex-servicemen, but it is highly unfortunate that a family which served the country for so many years and having produced three generations of soldiers was treated by the Telugu Desam government with such indifference and callousness.

Chandrababu Naidu said that he would turn Andhra Pradesh into a Japan or Singapore and took people of the entire state for a ride. Instead, this TDP government indulged only in loot and plunder. Amravati is a glowing symbol of all-round corruption today. He has not done anything in these four years apart from looting resources worth Rs.2000 crores, the people told me. Land and properties were plundered by him and his cronies freely. In the bargain, the progress of the state, has been pushed back by several decades, they pointed out.

I have a poser for the chief minister—you had said that you would waive loans. Are you not responsible for plunging the state of Andhra Pradesh into a crisis of debts? Is this your incompetence or your plunder? Farmers’ loans and those of self-help groups run by women are mounting by the day. Public debt continues to climb. Meanwhile, your assets continue to grow all the time. You have been declared the richest chief minister in the country. What is this a pointer to? What does it signify? How are we supposed to interpret this revelation?