Will take Pawan’s comments positively, says Anitha

Anantapur: Home minister Vangalapudi Anitha on Tuesday said she viewed Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan’s remarks on her handling of the state’s law and order situation in a constructive way. Anitha’s response followed Pawan’s criticism on Monday day over deteriorating law and order conditions and increased violence against women, particularly five months into the tenure of the new coalition government comprising the TDP, BJP, and Jana Sena.

“I took his (Kalyan’s) comments positively. His press meet was, in fact, encouraging. He provided a supportive foundation for my work and urged me to be even more assertive. That’s what he communicated,” Anitha told reporters.

Anitha said as the home minister, she recognises her responsibilities and the demands of her role. She also emphasised that Pawan did not label her a failure. The home minister noted that she had spoken to Kalyan about the matter, and he clarified that he was referring to the alleged registration of cases based on caste under the previous YSRCP government.

Further, she underscored that Andhra Pradesh is strict about maintaining law and order. “The Chief Minister is serious that anyone contemplating a crime should fear. He (CM) said we will bring special laws to deter criminal behaviour. This message came directly from the CM,” she said.

Defending Pawan as the Deputy Chief Minister, Anitha said that some people were unnecessarily politicising the issue.

It may be recalled that the Deputy CM on Monday expressed concerns about the state’s law and order situation, suggesting that “things would be different” if he were the home minister, remarks seen as direct criticism of Vangalapudi Anitha.

His comments came after recent incidents, including the rape and murder of a three-year-old girl by a relative in Tirupati district.

Meanwhile, the home minister participated in the passing out parade of DSPs at reviewed the law and order conditions in the twin districts of Anantapur- Sri Sathyasai district here on Tuesday.

The two SPs of the district gave a power point presentation on the law and order conditions concerned.

The home minister patted the police for weeding out leftwing extremism from the state. “The police personnel command respect among many uniformed services of diverse nature. They should be vigilant and should not be allowed to be shown in poor light because of stray incidents involving negligence, etc.,” she said.

She said by taking precautionary measures, criminal activity should be brought down and special vigilance should be displayed in monitoring and tracking down movements of rowdy sheeters and anti-social elements. The government will definitely supply CC cameras which play a pivotal role in capturing crime and tracking and identifying criminals, she said and called upon the police to take maximum advantage of technology in controlling crime.

DGP Ch Dwaraka Tirumala Rao described the passing out parade for the DSPs as a memorable one. He said that the DSPs have a responsibility in delivery of goods from constable to inspectors in their roles. They should study the intricacies of policing in leading their subordinates. “Your functioning should be above reproach and impartial. You should never forget the oaths taken until your retirement. You must be well versed with the rules book. You must uphold human rights,” advised the new DSPs.

PTC principal and IGP Venkatram Reddy, law and order IGP Srikanth, Anantapur range DIG Shimodhi and SPs Jagadeesh and V Ratna were among those who participated.