YSRCP says the mahapadayatra by Amaravati farmers is funded by TDP and is against the balanced development of all regions of the state.
Amaravati farmers at the launch of their Maha Padayatra 2.0 from Venkatapalem in Tulluru Mandal on 12 September. (Supplied)
Determined to foil the objective of the Maha Padayatra 2.0 by Amaravati farmers — building public opinion against the three-capitals plan of the state government — the ruling YSRCP has drawn up a strategy to the last detail for implementation from Wednesday, Vijayadasimi, the most auspicious day for taking up any programme.
YSRCP has deemed the Maha Padayatra by the Amaravati farmers was politically motivated and funded by the opposition TDP and that it is against the balanced and overall development of all the regions of the state.
The YSRCP is also firm in its three-capitals plan, despite the fact that all the Opposition parties want only one capital for the state at Amaravati.
TIll now, the YSRCP has been countering the arguments of the Opposition, mainly the TDP, that there should be only one capital, but now it wants to match its words with action by taking the issue into the midst of the people.
Party General Secretary Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy, a top aide of Chief Minister and YSRCP supremo YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, held a key meeting with MLAs, Assembly coordinators and party district presidents and exhorted them to take the “Decentralisation” message aggressively to the masses and also to counter the Maha Padayatra by the Amaravati farmers.
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To begin with, in all the 175 Assembly segments of the state, party leaders and cadres will break coconuts in temples, conduct special pujas on the auspicious Vijayadasami day, and pray to the goddess that the government’s three-capitals plan, caught in the legal tangle, takes off.
Party sources said an action plan to sustain the momentum of the campaign has been prepared.
After Vijayadasami pujas, round table conferences will be held in all the regions of the state where intelligentsia and representatives from various sections of society will discuss the need for three capitals. At a later stage, demonstrations, rallies, and candlelight marches would be organised.
The party is also weighing the pros and cons of organising a rival padayatra to take the wind out of the sails of the Amaravati farmers’.
YSRCP General Secretary and top Jagan aide Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy. (Sajjala/Facebook)
“The TDP leadership is campaigning for its so-called capital of 29 villages’ real estate ventures. We should give a strong rebuttal to the TDP, Chandrababu Naidu, and bust their looting scam. Our only aim is the decentralisation of administration and comprehensive development of the state,” Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy told a party meeting held via teleconference.
“The TDP is making incursions into all places in the name of padayatra and it has now entered East Godavari. From there they will go to Arasavalli via Vizag. We should send a strong message that this invasion of TDP and their ideology is wrong.
“Their ideology is to incite hatred among some sections and regions. We must expose them. CM Jagan recently asked us to have a discussion with the people. We have planned these round table conferences on his orders,” he added.
YSRCP insiders told South First that the aggressive campaign in support of the three-capitals plan involves a two-pronged strategy.
As the state elections are just 19 months away, YSRCP aims to politically corner the TDP by painting it as a party that is against the development of other regions like Rayalaseema and north Andhra just because their leaders had vested real estate interests in Amaravati.
Alongside, YSRCP leaders and cadres will work to muster support for the three-capitals plan by explaining to people how it will help benefit them.
“Jagan Mohan Reddy has stuck to this decision on the three capitals keeping in mind the aspirations of the people of all three regions. The mandate the people gave us in the recent local body elections is proof enough that they are with us and not with the TDP. But the Opposition parties are still trying to incite the farmer community,” said Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy.
He added that as part of their plan, TDP leaders incited violence during their Tirupati Padayatra. Now, they are doing a padayatra for the same reason in Arasavalli. They even went to Rayalaseema and tried to incite violence. Now they are trying to use the same formula, he pointed out.
