APOLC chairman resigns in protest over giving YSR name to Health University

VIJAYAWADA: Prominent writer and former Rajya Sabha member Yarlagadda Lakshmiprasad on Wednesday announced his resignation from the post of chairman of Andhra Pradesh Official Languages Commission in protest against the renaming of NTR University of Health Sciences after late YS Rajasekhar Reddy.

Several other leaders also raised objections against the removal of the NTR name from the university.

Lakshmiprasad submitted his resignation within hours of the government renaming the health university after YSR through a legislation in the assembly. Prasad also quit the post of AP Hindi Academy chairman.

Prasad, who had earlier worked as a lecturer of Hindi in Andhra University, had been a tutor of Hindi for NTR when the latter entered national politics in late 80s. He entered politics only at the instance of NTR. He later became a close associate of NTR’s son Nandamuri Harikrishna and got nominated to Rajya Sabha along with the latter.

The TD leader demanded the resignation of NTR followers in the YSR Congress party, including Nandamuri Lakshmi Parvathi as also Kodali Nani and Vallabhaneni Vamsi.

CPI(M) state leader Madhu said, “Jagan is unnecessarily creating controversies.”

TD general secretary Nara Lokesh announced that TD will rename the university after NTR when it returns to power.

Gannavaram MLA Vallabhaneni Vamsi who was elected from TD and later changed his loyalties to YSRC responded on the name change. Vamsi who praised Jagan for naming a district after NTR appealed to the CM to look into the possibility of continuing the name of NTR for the Health University.