Jagan using SC, ST Act to harass Naidu: TDP's Saptagiri Prasad

Amaravati: Telugu Desam Party leader Saptagiri Prasad on 20 March urged the Jagan Mohan Reddy government and the ruling YSRCP leaders to stop misusing the SC, ST Atrocities Act to take political vendetta against former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and the TDP leaders.

Dr. Saptagiri asserted that the law was enacted with the sole purpose of protecting the rights of the Dalits and Tribals and not to help leaders like Jagan harass their political rivals. The AP officials, however, filed an FIR under the atrocities Act against Mr. Naidu based on a complaint given by a non-SC/ST MLA, he added.

Addressing a press conference here on Saturday, the TDP leader reminded the YSRCP leaders that only the Dalits and Tribals could file cases under the SC, ST Atrocities Act. "When the High Court asked for prima facie proof against Mr. Naidu in the assignment lands case, the government advocates were unable to provide a valid argument on why the case was filed without prima facie evidence. The Jagan Reddy regime is the only government in the entire country that has the dubious distinction of filing atrocity cases against the SC, ST themselves," the TDP leader said.

Dr. Saptagiri said that Jagan and his family were still in possession of over 600 acres of assignment lands in the 800-acre Idupulapaya estate in the Kadapa district. A proper case should be filed against the Chief Minister in this respect, he said, adding that instead of cleaning his own record, Jagan was trying to implicate the TDP chief who has a four-decade-long track record as a people's leader. The YSRCP and Vijayamma have also tried to implicate Mr. Naidu in the past but their attempts failed, he added.

The TDP leader said that Jagan's government had issued GO 25 only to transfer assignment lands to his near and dear ones in the name of solar power projects. Instead of this, the CM should give 10 acres out of the 600 acres assignment lands to develop a solar power project in his Idupulapaya estate, he said.

Dr. Saptagiri also questioned the YSRCP government's decision to ask proof from the same persons against whom it was filing cases without any preliminary probe. The YSRCP leaders once said that Amaravati was named the capital to benefit only one particular caste but now they were saying that the Dalits had their own lands there, the TDP leader said.