Andhra Pradesh will soon be going to the polls simultaneously for the assembly as well as the Lok Sabha.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and YSRCP chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Sunday called on beneficiaries of the government’s welfare schemes to take on the role of star campaigners for the ruling party in the upcoming polls.
He was addressing a public meeting at Raptadu in Anantapur district. Jagan Reddy told the party cadre to work as a full-fledged army to make a clean sweep in the forthcoming elections.
The state will soon be going to the polls simultaneously for the legislative assembly as well as the Lok Sabha.
Later, he addressed a massive gathering of YSRCP supporters and party cadres in Rayalaseema district, as part of the ‘Siddham’ (ready) series of political meetings of the ruling party.
“The forthcoming elections are a battle of ideologies, not just of electing MLA and MPs. It is a battle to continue the welfare schemes against the designs of Chandrababu Naidu and his capitalistic forces; to curtail them. Are you ready for this battle?” Reddy asked the audience at the public meeting.
For much of his speech, Reddy targeted TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu and presented a comparative picture on welfare schemes.
Challenging the leader of the opposition, Reddy asked the people to recall any good scheme that came to their mind from the 14 long years in three tenures that Chandrababu Naidu had been chief minister.
He questioned if a single scheme — or the concept of social justice — comes to the mind of women, old people, students and other sections when Naidu’s name is mentioned.
Wondering aloud if Naidu had fulfilled even 10 per cent of the promises he made in the election manifestos of 1995, 1999 and 2014, Reddy alleged that the TDP chief “is coming again for the 2024 elections with a colourful manifesto and schemes to cheat people”.
Characterising Naidu as being deceitful, Reddy accused the opposition leader of just making tall promises that are merely deceptions. He called on YSRCP cadres, leaders and activists to visit every household and drive home this message.
Furthermore, Reddy impressed upon the crowd the importance of returning the YSRCP to power to “continue the welfare schemes and the reforms initiated in the past five years”.
He further said that the elections are a war between YSRCP’s credibility and TDP’s deception and called upon the people to be wary that a vote for the TDP and its allies would distance away the fruits of social justice from the people.
He asked the Party cadre to remind people that ‘fan’ should always be kept in the house while the ‘cycle’ and ‘tea glass’ should be kept out of the house and in the sink respectively.
According to the Chief Minister, as many as 125 times in the past five years he has distributed welfare through the direct benefit transfer (DBT) under various schemes, to disburse Rs 2.55 lakh crore in total.
Likewise, he asserted, he had created 2.13 lakh jobs during his tenure and noted that 80 per cent of the vacancies were filled by SC, ST, BC and minority communities — among other statistics that he listed out as achievements of the YSRCP government.
He asked the people to choose between Jagan who has stood by the election manifesto in letter and spirit and fulfilled 99 per cent of the promises and Chandrababu Naidu who took every section of society for a “ride throwing it into the dustbin” after the 2014 elections.
Pointing out that the polls are in less than two months, he called on every volunteer and supporter to go to every home and campaign for the YSRCP.