Former Andhra Pradesh CM Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Hyderabad: Asserting that the N Chandrababu Naidu-led coalition government in Andhra Pradesh had failed on all fronts, pushing the state into a dark age, YSRCP supremo and former Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday warned the police to stick to the rule book and not buckle under pressure to dance to the tunes of ruling party.
Speaking to the media in Tadepalli on Thursday, he said the law and order situation had worsened and social media activists were being harassed and picked up without following due procedure. He added that over the past five months, safety of women and girls had also been been badly affected.
Quoting a Supreme Court ruling, the former Chief Minister said notices first should be given and then a magistrate's permission should be taken and then, armed with a warrant, the cops can arrest a person.
However, Jagan said that cops in Andhra had thrown procedures to the wind, and accused them of picking up people for questioning, detaining them in stations, and even of arresting family members if the accused was not available. The former CM also said that phone numbers had been announced to help people get legal aid in such cases.
“Police should safeguard the dignity and decorum of their uniform as political power is not permanent and if they continue to do the same, the legal cell of the Party will take up the issue and all erring officials will have to face the music, when we come back to power. We track down every officer and take action,” he warned.
He further said: "We will also lodge private complaints against them. Police have been detaining social media activists for questioning the corrupt practices of the government during the recent flood in Vijayawada and other areas of irregularities. What their post said was not new... the media reported about the irregularities in flood relief and on rescue ops in Vijayawada and the police have hounded them on the directions of their political bosses."
Illegal detentions have become the order of the day and police have no right to bring family members to police stations, he said. Family members of the accused in various cases were picked from Tenali, Chilakaruripeta, Tadepalle, Markapuram, Pendyala, Guntur, Tiruvur, Hyderabad and other places. In all, 101 cases were booked mocking the Supreme Court ruling, Jagan asserted.
“On the other hand, TDP official website had posted fake news about my mother when her car broke down and when she wrote a letter as rejoinder they even dubbed it as fake. Now, what action did police take against them?,” he questioned the police.
“Such type of character assassination is going on and if police look the other way, they will be answerable in the coming days. I tell the police and the DGP not to degrade and belittle themselves but to work as per law and do not yield to pressure,” he added.
Highlighting the miserable failure of the government in maintaining law and order, Jagan said there had been 91 instances of atrocities against women and minors in the last five months, with many of the perpetrators being the ruling party's supporters. No case was registered and the culprits are moving freely, he said.
On the Saraswati Cements and Industries issue, he played the video of the MRO who acknowledged the party's stand. The mining lease is always for 50 years, Jagan said, adding that the delay was due to the cases filed against him by the Congress and the TDP.
“I moved court and got a favourable verdict. The government should try to bring in investment but this coalition is driving away them. The Jindal Group had come to invest in Kadapa Steel Plant but he has been coerced into bringing in a starlet who is a habitual offender,” he added.