EC orders covering of politicos’ statues in AP

                                                                                    
Two days ahead of the formal announcement of the state by-elections scheduled for June 12, the Election Commission has ordered covering of all the statues of  former chief ministers Y S Rajashekhara Reddy, N T Rama Rao  and  former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.

The EC took the decision, as in the case of masking statues of Mayawati during the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, after it received several complaints by the Congress and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP)  that YSR Congress president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy was on an “YSR  statue unveiling spree” during his “Odarpu yatra.” The YSRC has allegedly installed nearly  2,200  YSR statues in 16  districts, including Hyderabad and Nizamabad.

The complaint said another 2,000 statues and busts of YSR were installed in Vijayawada, fishermen hamlets and localities of weaker section in various districts.

Door-to-door campaign

The Election Commission has also banned the door-to-door campaign during the period of 48 hours before the beginning of the poll. Ironically, there were only 700 statues and busts of  NTR in all the coastal, Rayalaseema and Telangana districts.

The TDP avoided NTR statues till 2003 for the fear that the move would only help NTR's wife Lakshmiparvati, who had floated her own party. A life statue of NTR was put in NTR Bhavan only  in June  2003, almost 10  months  ahead of the general election of  2004.

The Congress had put a lid on the YSR statue campaign since November 2010 after the Jagan launched his own party. Although the Congress had planned a memorial for YSR on the lines of NTR ghat near the State Secretariat, nothing has materialised so far.

Likewise, though a memorial has been built on a five-acre forest area at the spot where YSR’s helicopter crashed in Kurnool district, it is yet to be inaugurated.
from  Deccan herald 

YSR wife files plaint against Naidu in apex court

                                                                              
Y S Vijayalakshmi, the wife of the late Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy and mother of Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, said that she will not rest until Telugu Desam Party chief N Chandrababu Naidu is put behind bars for the “illegal” wealth he amassed during his nine-year term as chief minister.

In an effort to turn the tide against her son’s distractors the YSR Congress honorary president and Pulivendula MLA, Vijayamma (as she is fondly addressed to), on Friday filed a petition before the Supreme Court challenging the AP High Court’s decision to dismiss her plea for an inquiry by the CBI and other central agencies into alleged disproportionate assets of Naidu, Eenadu group Chairman Ch Ramoji Rao and others.

The matter may come up for hearing after vacations. The High Court division bench comprising justices G Rohini and Ashutosh Mohunta on February 16 dismissed the PIL petition of Vijayamma, seeking CBI probe into the “disproportionate assets” of Naidu.

The bench declared the order issued by another division bench on November 14, 2011, ordering a preliminary inquiry by the CBI against Naidu and others, to be a violation of the principles of natural justice.

It observed that there was a political rivalry between the YSR Congress and TDP and the present writ petition appeared to be a counter-attack to the investigation ordered against the petitioner’s son. Vijayamma, in her 45-page latest petition before the apex court, asked whether it was appropriate for the HC bench to dismiss her petition when another bench had earlier ordered an enquiry into the issue.

Youngest member in 1st Lok Sabha to be honoured in New Delhi

                                                                                  
At the age of 27 he was the youngest parliamentarian in the first Lok Sabha, elected from Rajahmundry dual constituency. 87-year-old Kaneti Mohana Rao, who now lives at Matlapalem village in Tallarevu mandal, 12 km from Kakinada will be felicitated in Delhi as the member of first Lok Sabha along with others.
Though the authorities had missed sending the invitation to him, he read about it in a newspaper and sent a telegram to Lok Sabha speaker Ms Meira Kumar that he is still surviving. On Saturday he received an invitation from the parliament secretary to visit New Delhi for felicitation.
Mr Mohan Rao was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1952-1957 on the ticket of undivided Communist Party of India.
He was the part of nationalist movement since the age of 12 years and participated in the struggle against razakars in Telangana region, which lead to his incarceration in various jails at Rajahmundry, Yanam, Eluru and other places.
My entire family sacrificed for the nation. All of our family members including our sisters spent days in underground. All our properties were sold for the cause of the nation. I don’t worry for it,” he said. While he is disillusioned with present day politics of money, he nevertheless, holds the Parliament in high esteem as an institution and that is why he has accepted the invitation. He also recalled his association with another veteran Mr Subrahmanya Tilak, who will also be felicitated in New Delhi.
Mr Mohan Rao is not in favour of Telangana, as only united Andhra Pradesh “Visalandhra” can achieve progress and prosperity.
From DC

Kiran 's tirade against Jagan surprises leaders

                                                                         

Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy by increasing in one go the stridency of his attack on the YSRCP president and Kadapa MP Jaganmohan Reddy than ever before in course of his road show at Tirupati on Friday must have clearly left awe-struck his detractors in the State Congress leadership who had even complained to the party high command that he had been handling Jagan with kid gloves for some reason or other, though the reason is obvious.

Rude shock

What must have come as a rude shock to Jagan and his close camp followers was perhaps his harsh remarks that starting initially from ‘economic offences' he (Jagan) had grown up to ‘gang up' with killers, gun-runners and criminals to ‘amass wealth'.

Willy-nilly, with his stinging attack against Jagan perhaps for the first time, Kiran Reddy must have succeeded in sending a signal loud and clear to his detractors in the party and more importantly to the high command “observers” at Delhi who have been virtually breathing down his neck, that he has stopped playing hide and seek while dealing with Jagan and that he was now going for his jugular. Kiran does not seem to have any other option either as he has to safeguard his own position which is directly monitoring his working.

In fact as though to match Kiran's sharp barbs at Jagan, the other two key Congress leaders in the road show, APCC president, Botcha Satyanarayana and Rajya Sabha member, Chiranjeevi also had to notch up their rhetoric against Jagan, than their normal decibel level.

Retaliatory attack

But rather surprisingly, there was not much of retaliatory attack against Kiran's outburst against Jagan, even from the District leaders of the YSRCP. The lone hit back has come from only the Farmers' Wing of the District YSRCP which sought to turn the table against the Chief Minister by recalling the serious charges levelled against him (Kiran and his brother by none other than his own party MLA and former minister, Shankar Rao dubbing them as ‘red-sanders smugglers'. He had even promised to prove his charges, they said.

The YSRCP leaders, led by T.Adikesavulu Reddy, district farmers wing convener asked the CM whether it was fair on his part to spread canards against Jaganmohan Reddy who is none other than the son of Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy who gave him (Kiran) his political life. The leaders have said in their statement that they however understood Kiran's predicament that unless he heaped barbs on Jagan, his own fate would be sealed by the high command.

From HINDU

Jagan's aim is to protect his wealth: Narayana

                                                                       

Communist Party of India State secretary K. Narayana on Saturday alleged that ‘corrupt' leaders such as Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy were trying to become Chief Minister only to protect their ill-gotten wealth.

He also lashed out at Roads and Buildings Minister Dharmana Prasada Rao for ‘indulging in corrupt activities' and ‘grabbing government land on the national highway using benamis'.

Bypoll

Addressing a press conference here, Mr. Narayana said the CPI would extend its support to the Telugu Desam Party in all the 18 Assembly and the Nellore Lok Sabha seat in by-elections on June 12.

The party was planning a series of agitations – from June 5 to 15 and again from June 24 to 30 – to highlight ‘the misrule' of the Congress and the atrocities of the mining mafia in the State. People's issues such as hike in property tax, escalation of prices of all essential commodities would also be highlighted during the agitation.

“We plan to stage protests in front of excise offices on May 25 to highlight the loopholes in the liquor policy.” CPI MLC Jalli Wilson, district secretary Ch. Sundarlal and senior leader G.V. Satyanarayana Murthy were present.

From Hindu

Teach Congress, TDP a lesson: Jagan

                                                                      

Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy, president of YSR Congress Party and MP, has said a vote for his party in the by-election will be a vote for the poor as well, as 17 MLAs sacrificed their posts espousing the cause of the poor and farmers.

He exhorted the rural voters to note the supreme sacrifice made by his colleagues like Y. Channakesava Reddy and return them back to power with a thumping majority to teach the Congress and TDP a lesson. Braving the hot sun, Mr. Reddy undertook a gruelling campaign in Yemmiganur Assembly constituency on Saturday, which will go to polls along with Allagadda in Kurnool district on June 12. He did not raise any of the controversial subjects in his speeches except saying that he had to come to public with the only plea of seeking support for his party. He highlighted the support given to farmers, housing programme, fee reimbursement to students, health insurance scheme (Aarogyasri) and ambulance service by his father Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy.

The present Congress government is not sincere about the programmes and tried to dilute them. He accused the state Congress of being remote controlled by New Delhi and of lacking individual decision making power.

After launching his campaign from Yerrakota, native village of party nominee Y. Channakesava Reddy, Mr. Reddy addressed roadside meetings at Guvvaladoddi, Peddamariveedu, Chinnamariveedu, Aluvala, Yenugubala, Daivamdinne and other places. Meanwhile, the police escorting the convoy tried to enforce election code by asking vehicle drivers to make a move. The poll officials monitored the electioneering process looking for violations.

From Hindu

It will be wrong to compare Jagan with YSR'

                                                                               

Agriculture Minister Kanna Lakshminarayana said on Saturday the by-elections were necessitated by Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy's penchant for power and it would be wrong to draw a comparison with his father Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, who worked hard for the growth of the Congress. Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy is nursing his ambition to become the Chief Minister and he would stoop to any level to realise his dream.

Addressing a by-election campaign meeting in this village in Prathipadu constituency on Saturday, Mr. Lakshminarayana said Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy amassed wealth when his father was at the helm of affairs and it is imperative that he should become the Chief Minister for protecting his ill-gotten wealth.

from Hindu

Special sittings today to mark 60 yrs of Parliament

                                                                            
New Delhi: The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, holding special sittings on Sunday, will focus on the 'sixty years journey of Indian Parliament' as they celebrate 60th anniversary of its first session.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will initiate the debate in the Rajya Sabha while Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will do it in the Lok Sabha.

Singh and Mukherjee are the Leaders of the two Houses.

Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, who is the moving spirit behind the idea, would make the opening remarks from the Chair to mark the special day of the largest parliamentary democracy in the world.

Besides prominent members from all sides, independents are also being accomodated in the over five-hour discussion.

A few living members of the first Lok Sabha, including Reishang Keishing and Resham Lal Jangde, will be honoured on the ocassion.

91-year-old Reishang Keishing, now a member of the Rajya Sabha, was member of the first and third Lok Sabhas. Jangde was member of first, second and ninth Lok Sabhas.

Both the Houses of Parliament will meet at 11.00 am and will conclude the discussions at 4.30 pm.

In the evening, President Pratibha Patil will address a joint sitting of both Houses in the Central Hall. Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari, the Prime Minister and Kumar will also address the joint sitting.

Patil will release coins of Rs 5 and Rs 10 denomination to mark the occasion along with a special stamp.

The President will release three books -- Members' Introduction: First Lok Sabha; Speakers of Lok Sabha and '60 years of the Lok Sabha: An Analysis' on the ocassion. The books are published by the Lok Sabha Secretariat.

Patil will also release five other books 'Selected Speeches of Women Members of the Constituent Assembly', 'Welcome Respected Chairman', '60 years of the Rajya Sabha', 'Computerisation of the Rajya Sabha: An Overview' and 'Nominated Members of the Rajya Sabha'.

A cultural programme featuring Santoor maestro Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma, Sitarist Debu Chaudhuri, Carnatic vocalist Maharajapuram Ramachandran, versatile singer Shubha Mudgal and Iqbal Khan will light up the evening.
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