Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu ridiculed former chief minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy’s demand for a status of ‘Leader of Opposition’, though his party was reduced to an insignificant number of assembly seats in the recent elections.
For the first time referring to Jagan’s demand for opposition status, he said that it is people who should give him such a status. He also said that any one can win seats only if people desire. He lamented that one can not get status of a `Leader of Opposition’ through threats or criminal acts.
He reminded that it was people who decided that Jagan is not fit for the status of opposition leader. But, he wondered if Jagan is repeatedly asking for such a status. It may be recalled that Jagan has submitted a petition to the Speaker seeking `opposition status’. Moreover, Jaganmohan Reddy is threatening that if the Speaker doesn’t give him such a status, he will approach the AP High Court.
However, the alliance ministers are invoking a rules position, which determined that a party having a minimum of 10 per cent members in the house is only eligible to be recognized as an opposition party. They are making it clear that with 11 members strength, YCP is not eligible at all to be recognised as an opposition party in the assembly.
Meanwhile, Chandrababu Naidu during his tour in Ambedkar Konaseema district alleged that Jaganmohan Reddy ruled the state under the curtain for five years. During the last five years of Jagan’s rule, he said that schools were closed and trees were cut down in order to conduct his meetings and tours.
“NDA is a government that benefits the poor people. Ours is a simple governance. Works should be done only for the needs of the village and not for the needs of the contractors”, he added.