Jagan flays CM for ‘failing’ to protect girls

Tadepalli: YSRCP president and former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has strongly criticised Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and the TDP for failing to protect women in Andhra Pradesh.

He highlighted Naidu’s deliberate undermining of key safety programmes like the ‘Disha’ initiative which had resulted in growing incidents of violence against women in the State.

Taking the social media platform ‘X’, the YSRCP chief cited the tragic incident in Badvel, where a college girl was set on fire and killed. He expressed condolences to the victim’s family.

Jagan pointed out that under the YSRCP government’s tenure, the ‘Disha’ initiative had provided protection to 31,607 women and girls, with the app downloaded by 1.56 crore people.

Jagan stated that to strengthen the ‘Disha’ initiative, his government had specifically established 13 POCSO courts, 12 women’s courts and forensic labs. He mentioned that public prosecutors were appointed in every district and 900 bikes along with 163 Bolero vehicles were provided to the police to enhance patrolling under the ‘Disha’ programme.

Additionally, 18 ‘Disha’ police stations were set up, along with 18 crime management vehicles, all connected to the police command control room. Jagan emphasised that during his tenure, the ‘Disha’ programme was given top priority in law and order reviews, ensuring that the police remained vigilant at all times. YS Jagan flayed Chandrababu Naidu, questioning why he was stopping important programmes aimed at empowering and protecting women.