TDP chief N. Chandrababu Naidu and Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan during the release of manifesto of NDA alliance in Andhra Pradesh, on Tuesday, April 30, 2024.
Credit: PTI Photo
Hyderabad: In a major embarrassment to alliance partners TDP and Jana Sena, BJP refused to be part of the 'joint' NDA manifesto in Andhra Pradesh.
BJP, TDP and Jana Sena had announced the alliance to contest in the upcoming assembly and Lok Sabha polls in Andhra Pradesh. However, BJP was missing from the manifesto 'branding'. The 'missing' endorsement did affect the manifesto launch even though the party's senior leader and Andhra Pradesh election observer, Siddharth Nath Singh, was seen sharing the dais with TDP chief, N Chandrababu Naidu and Jana Sena supremo, Pawan Kalyan, who released the joint manifesto 'Prajagalam' on Tuesday.
However, Singh refused to even hold the manifesto during the launch.
Ever since the announcement of BJP-TDP-Jana Sena alliance in the state, YSRCP supremo YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has been showing the alliance's 2014 manifesto that had the photos of Modi, Naidu and Pawan and, more incriminatingly, poll promises that the alliance were unable to fulfill.
Jagan in his public meetings has driven home the message that the TDP coalition government between 2014 and 2019 failed to implement the Modi-endorsed joint manifesto.
The TDP- Jana Sena manifesto that was released on Tuesday promised 'Super six' schemes with free bus travel for all women, three cylinders for free under Deepam scheme, Rs18,000 per year at the rate of Rs.1,500 per month to every woman who has completed 18 years under the girl child fund, allowance of Rs 3,000 per month for unemployed youth, free tap connection to every household, supply of clean drinking water and financial assistance of Rs 15,000 per year for children studying under 'Thalliki Vandanam'. The joint manifesto had also promised Rs 1 lakh to Muslims to go on Hajj and monetary assistance to Christians to take a holy trip to Jerusalem besides monthly honorarium to Muslim clerics.
The manifesto had also promised that Amaravati will continue as capital of Andhra Pradesh while resuming all the stalled works. The manifesto also promised to develop Visakhapatnam which was touted as executive capital by the current government as financial capital of the state.
The TDP supremo noted that NDA partner BJP, which issued a national level manifesto under its banner, would extend complete cooperation to the opposition coalition’s manifesto in Andhra Pradesh. “NDA released a manifesto at the national level. But they are not associating with any manifesto at the state level. However, I have faith that they will extend complete cooperation to this (manifesto). That’s why they (Sidharth Nath Singh) came personally to endorse,” he said. “Three parties have come together. And our union is for the victory of people and the state should withstand and there should be light in people’s lives,” he added.
He also said that the future of the people of the state is hanging in balance.
Insecurity, unrest, murders and suicides are widespread across the State and every family has a debt burden of Rs 8 lakh with the high rising prices and massive tax burden. From one hand Rs 10 is being distributed and from the other looting Rs 100 from everyone while the state stood on top in unemployment in the country, he added.
“What is more distressing is that the state occupied third place in the country in farmers suicides and second place in atrocities against girls below the age group of 18. The interlinking of rivers and the Polavaram project are completely neglected while the capital city of Amaravathi, which was the centre once for providing employment and revenue generation is totally destroyed,” he stated.
The TDP supremo expressed serious concern that lakhs of acres of people's lands are being grabbed with the help of the Land Titling Act and the State has been robbed of Rs 8 lakh cr through land, sand, mining, wines, ganja and drug mafia.
Asking as to why 10 per cent reservations for Backward Castes in local bodies has been cut, he added that 16,800 persons had lost their posts as a result. He also claimed that the supply of spurious liquor claimed the innocent lives of over 35 lakh people.
When someone raised a voice against these atrocities, illegal cases were foisted against them and some were even killed by YSRCP party workers, he alleged.