Praja Sankalpa Yatra Diary, Day 113: Did Chandrababu’s Seniority Help Him Only In Deceiving People?

Vallabharavupalem, Guntur district: This morning on my Padayatra, I came across a poor farmer, Poola Subramaniam, who was sitting on a protest fast by the road. He has been on a fast unto death for four days. He said, “Sir, the Central and the state governments have cheated Andhra Pradesh on the subject of special category status. Grave injustice has been done to us,” he said, his eyes blazing with anger. He will not end his fast till the government yields to the demand of the people of AP, he asserted. I found his conviction touching and congratulated him. If people come together and stay united, the objective of SCS to AP, can be achieved. The fact that Chandrababu Naidu, who had settled for a special package, is now shifting his stance to demanding SCS bears testimony to this.

“Sir, thanks to Arogyasri, the pioneering health care initiative launched by your father, the late Dr. YS Rajasekhara Reddy, my son could undergo heart surgery twice. What would otherwise have cost Rs.3 lakhs was done free of cost, thanks to your father’s concern for the poor. We named him Jagan, after you, as an expression of our gratitude to your great father. Truly it was he who gave him a rebirth through Arogyasri,” he said. He called his son to come and greet. It was a moving experience to see for myself once again how the poor and deprived always remember the good done to them by visionary leaders. Such acts stay printed in their hearts and minds for ever.

After crossing Vallabharavupalem, a short distance away, I saw women rushing towards me from the fields they were working in. They narrated their problems to me, at great length. One old woman, Nagamani, told me, “Son, my husband suffers from polio, my daughter lost her husband and I, therefore, take care of her two children. She does not get any pension she said, adding, “Last year, I took 2 acres of agricultural land on lease. I began to cultivate black gram, but to my luck, nature played spoilsport and I suffered heavy losses. I did not receive a rupee by way of assistance from the government. Out of compulsion I now work as a daily wage labourer.” It was painful to see a woman of her age being forced to work because of such circumstances. I was saddened to learn that the government did not offer any assistance to her. Caught between nature which can be unkind at times and the cruelty of an insensitive government, farmers of the state are in a pitiable state today. Agriculture in Andhra Pradesh faces a grave crisis.

YSRCP MPs are continuing their protest vocally in the Parliament championing the cause of special category status to Andhra Pradesh. They have been waging a relentless protest in parliament in this respect. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all political parties who offered their support to the no-confidence motion against the NDA government being moved by YSRCP. I am grateful to them for responding to my letters to them from the Padayatra, seeking their support.

I have a question for the chief minister—you brag about your seniority and 40 years of experience. How has your seniority helped you? Did it help you grab power by stabbing your father-in-law in the back and tucking away MLAs in the Viceroy Hotel back then? Did it serve you well in buying MLAs of Opposition for Rs. 20 crores and 30 crores? Did your seniority help you in turning Andhra Pradesh into the biggest hub of corruption? Did it help you trade special category status to Andhra Pradesh for special package and in the bargain deceive the 5 crore people of Andhra Pradesh?