Anantapur: Information and public relations minister Palle Raghunatha Reddy on Saturday sought explanation from the Congress leaders on the purpose of All India Congress Committee (AICC) vice-president Rahul Gandhi visiting Anantapur.
Talking to media persons after consoling the family members of a journalist Maruthi Chiranjeevi, who died in an accident recently at Kothacheruvu, the minister said that the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, which split the state and caused lot of hardship to the people of the state, had no moral right to talk on the farmers' issues and demanded explanation from Congress leaders.
Despite the people of the state teaching a fitting lesson to the Congress in the elections, the minister said that they have not learnt a lesson and are targeting the TD government on every development issue.
Mr Raghunatha Reddy slammed the Opposition leader Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy for opposing the development work of Telugu Desam government. While Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu is working hard for the development of the state, instead of giving suggestions as a responsible Opposition leader, Jagan is politicising every issue to get a mileage, the minister said.
The minister also accused Jagan of indirectly supporting the Telangana Rashtra Samiti in Telangana state and causing hardship to AP. Though the government is making sincere efforts to complete the Handri-Neeva Sujala Sravanti project, both Congress and YSRC leaders are giving priority only to criticise the government, Mr Raghunatha Reddy pointed out.
He also expressed regret over Jagan, who belonged to the Rayalaseema, for opposing the Pattiseema project, which aimed to irrigate and provide drinking water to the drought-hit and backward Rayalaseema region.
The information and public relations minister said that the government has plans to increase accidental insurance coverage for journalists to '10 lakh in the state. Later, the minister participated in a bike rally on the streets of Koth-acheruvu to get a feedback on problems in the area from the people.
