Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu today rejected Leader of Opposition Y S Jaganmohan Reddy’s demand of resignation for “failing” to secure special category status for the state.
“If I resign, will he get money (from the Centre),” Naidu questioned while addressing a meeting in the Assembly lobby here this evening.
Minutes earlier, Jagan addressed a press conference in the Assembly committee hall where he demanded that Chandrababu quit his post for having “welcomed” the Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s assertion that Andhra Pradesh would not be granted any special status.
“Chandrababu should not only resign but also pull out from the NDA government at the Centre. He should also tender apology to the people of Andhra Pradesh for having failed them,” the YSR Congress chief said.
Responding to this, Naidu said, “Why should I resign? I will resign. Will you get funds (from the Centre)?”
TDP joined the NDA government at the Centre essentially to protect the interests of the state, he said.
“We did not join the NDA government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1999 though we were offered seven to eight minister posts. We only accepted the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post to maintain a link between the TDP and the BJP,” Naidu recalled.
The Chief Minister also found fault with the YSRC and other opposition parties for the Andhra Pradesh bandh call tomorrow saying, “Do you want an already suffering state to suffer further? There is only a bad motive behind the bandh call.”
—PTI