VISHAKHAPATNAM: Deputy chief minister and Salur MLA Peedika Rajanna Dora has objected to the actions of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan in the disputed villages of Kotia of Salur mandal, where he and his followers drove away a police officer and raised slogans 'Go Back Andhra Police' on Saturday afternoon.
Dora said on Sunday that Pradhan’s remarks violated the Supreme Court order on the Kotia dispute.
“The Odisha government filed an original suit in 1968. Last month, the Supreme Court asked the AP government to produce documents to support its stand soon,” he said.
Expressing displeasure over the Union minister’s statement and attitude, Rajanna Dora urged Pradhan to respect the spirit of co-operative federal structure of the nation and maintain status quo in the border areas as ordered by the apex court.
“Being a central minister, Dharmendra Pradhan should not favour one state and he must respect the order of the apex court. As per the court order, 21 villages under six panchayats under Kotia cluster were under the jurisdiction of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha,” he added.
Dora said the Andhra Pradesh government led by chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has been maintaining inter-state coordination over the dispute over the Kotia cluster of villages. Jagan Reddy had met Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik and decided to work closely on resolving the question of jurisdiction over Kotia villages,” Dora added.
