Farmers' families crushed under 'JCB' rule: Lokesh

Mangalagiri: TDP national general secretary and MLC Nara Lokesh on Tuesday expressed concern that the farmers' families were becoming victims of attacks, harassment and land grabbers almost on a daily basis in the state.

Lokesh said that at least one farmer was coming on to the roads everyday to tell the people about the injustice done to their families. In the latest incident, the local minister's followers hatched a plan to grab the lands of farmer Vema Reddy at Rajupalem village in Hindupur Assembly constituency in Anantapur district. The ruling party gangsters used JCBs to dig up and breach the farmer's lands.

In a statement here, Lokesh slammed the minister's followers for diverting canal water through farmer Vema Reddy's lands. The officials were not taking any action despite several complaints made to them. Videos were available as evidence of how the YSRCP leaders were causing untold misery to the farmer's family. As part of the conspiracy to grab the lands, they were breaching its bunds and submerging it with water. Action should be initiated against the guilty before they would do greater injustice, he said.

Lokesh said the ruling party leaders were crossing all limits in grabbing the lands of helpless farmers. The whole family of farmer Lakshmi Reddy attempted suicide in their agricultural lands at Akkampalli in Anantapur district. They tried to take the extreme step following the attempts by the YSRCP leaders to grab their lands. The farmer's family was solely dependent on these lands. They were now living in constant fear of encroachment by the gangsters.

Blaming the Jagan Mohan Reddy regime, Lokesh said that this injustice was taking place just because some officials were conniving with the YSRCP leaders. The culprits in the Akkampalli land grab move should be nabbed.

Condemning 'non-stop attacks on Dalits', Lokesh said the YSRCP leaders and volunteers made a joint attack on sarpanch Macherla during gram sabha at Kondapuram village in Udayagiri Assembly constituency in Nellore district. The sarpanch was targetted and victimised just because he did not approve of the YSRCP leaders' move to use false documents to carry out illegal activities regarding the CJFS lands there.

The TDP leader said that all sections of people were facing a struggle for existence under the Jagan Mohan Reddy's Jungle Raj. The ACB, PCB and JCB rule has made the lives of ordinary people very difficult, he added.