Hyderabad: Agriculture minister Pocharam Srinivas Reddy on Wednesday created a buzz with a sensational disclosure, alleging that Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had hit him on his thigh after losing his cool some years ago.
Speaking in the Legislative Assembly, Mr Srinivas Reddy said that the incident took place when he was a minister in the Chandrababu Naidu Cabinet in undivided AP.
“On that day, Naidu told us about his final decision to privatise the Nizam Sugars. I pleaded to him with folded hands to reconsider his decision saying that Nizams Sugars factory was one of the oldest in Telangana and it helped farmers prosper and provided employment to a large number of people. But Naidu told us that it was his final decision to privatise and couldn’t be changed,” the minister said.
He continued: “Then I again told Naidu that due to this factory, several other sugar factories had flourished in Telangana and it was not a correct decision to close Nizam Sugars. I was sitting beside him and he got so annoyed that he hit me hard on my thigh in order not to argue further and went out of the meeting hall suddenly. My thigh turned red and I felt pain. I was shocked and remained seated in the same hall. After some time, Naidu’s gunman came to me and told me that the CM asked me to come to his chamber. When I went inside, Naidu came to me and asked whether I was feeling pain. I told him that he had not hit me on my thigh but on my heart as such was the humiliation I felt at that time.”
The comments left the House shocked and triggered protests from TD MLA A. Revanth Reddy. The minister said, “I kept this issue a secret all these years. I am disclosing this to others for the first time. Such was the attitude of Naidu against Telangana ministers.”
While the ruling party TRS MLAs raised 'shame...shame’ slogans in the House, the TD members responded with “lies..lies”.
Mr Revanth Reddy questioned why he continued to be in Mr Naidu’s Cabinet even after the incident. Mr Srinivas Reddy replied, “When Congress ministers from Telangana could continue in N. Kiran Kumar Reddy’s Cabinet even after he made an open statement in the House that he would not give a single rupee to Telangana, there is nothing wrong for me in having continued in Naidu’s Cabinet.”
