Andhra Pradesh: Atchannaidu arrest, harassment exposed Jagan sadism, says TDP leaders

Amaravati: TDP leaders roundly condemned the 'sadistic' and inhuman treatment of former minister K Atchannaidu by the government after arresting him like a 'terrorist' and warned that the government would be held responsible if anything untoward happens to him in terms of health.

TDP national general secretary and MLC Nara Lokesh said Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy's tendency of deriving sadistic pleasure by harassing TDP leaders was exposed by improper arrest and unfair treatment of former minister K Atchannaidu.

In a statement on Saturday, Lokesh said after arresting the TDP Legislature Party deputy leader like a 'terrorist' despite his health problems after he underwent a surgery. "They had not even allowed Atchannaidu to take his medicine before arresting him. They transported him all the way from his house in Srikakulam to Vijayawada and went on insulting him all the way. Now, the same Chief Minister is ordering the police and medical staff to provide better treatment to Atchannaidu, which is nothing but a sadism," he said. Former minister Devineni Uma Maheswara Rao addressing an online press conference criticised the ACB officials for making Atchannaidu to travel 500 km for 20 hours non-stop in spite of his precarious health. He accused Chief Minister YS Jagan Reddy of indulging in "factionist, anarchic Raja Reddy Constitution" ever since he came to power making a slew of false promises to the voters.

Uma Maheswara Rao said the entire police machinery became helpless in the state and ministers and MLAs were reduced to dummies.

TDP Rajya Sabha member Kanakamedala Ravindra Kumar said the Jagan government was running an "autocratic and lawless rule" in the state. Describing the current situation in the state "an undeclared Emergency", Ravindra Kumar said there were no fundamental rights or freedom of expression for the people and the opposition parties in the state as since coming to power, Jagan had been systematically attacking the Constitutional institutions by keeping the police machinery under his iron grip. He said prior announcements of the ministers about arrests of TDP leaders indicated the conspiracy for harassing opposition leaders. This is completely against the criminal jurisprudence amounting to serious violations of the Constitutional regulations, he said.

He said YSRCP leaders were spreading falsehoods regarding the arrest of J C Prabhakar Reddy and his son Asmith Reddy.