Jagan accuses CM of ‘undermining’ democratic values

Ramagiri (Sri Sathyasai district): YSRCP president Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy accused Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu of undermining democratic values and misusing the police force during the recent rural local body bypolls.

He visited Ramagiri mandal in the district to console the family of Lingamayya, who was allegedly killed amid poll-related tensions. He blamed the TDP for issuing threats, using coercion, and “manipulating the police despite lacking majority support.”

He told reporters that Lingamayya was killed by 20 people, but only two were booked, while three TDP members were made witnesses, just to weaken and dilute the case.

The former CM alleged that similar misuse of force occurred in Visakhapatnam, Tirupati, Ramakuppam, and Attili, accusing Naidu of grabbing power through threats, police pressure, and blatant political interference.

He pointed out that during the recent local body byelections, YSRCP won in 39 out of 57 contested places. In places where the TDP had no strength, violence was still instigated to disrupt the democratic process.

Referring to the Ramagiri MPP election, Jagan said that 9 out of 10 MPTCs elected were from YSRCP, yet TDP attempted to lure and threaten them.

He warned the police not to act as “watchmen” for the TDP, stating that the people were watching and would soon teach the NDA coalition government a lesson.

He also accused the Naidu-led government of spreading false propaganda about the state’s economy, ignoring the need for corrective measures to strengthen Andhra Pradesh’s fiscal health.

According to him, the TDP-led NDA government has focused solely on exaggerating the state’s economic performance. His remarks came after Naidu announced that Andhra Pradesh had registered the second-highest growth rate — 8.21 per cent — in the country for the fiscal year 2024–25, citing Government of India statistics. However, Jagan countered that the state recorded an “abysmally low” year-on-year growth of just 2.1 per cent in its tax revenues up to February 2025.