YSRCP govt shattered Gramaswaraj dream of Mahatma Gandhi: Purandheswari

Ongole: The YSR Congress Party government in the state has foiled the dream, the Gramaswaraj of Mahatma Gandhi, and neglected the necessities of the public in the villages, observed the president of Bharatiya Janata Party Andhra Pradesh state president, Daggubati Purandeswari.

The sarpanches are alleging that the state government has illegally withdrawn the 14th and 15th finance commission funds along with other grants from the union government from the accounts of the panchayats without their authentication. They are demanding the state government immediately return those funds and add the matching grants to take up pending and necessary infrastructure works at villages immediately.

Following the state call, the Bharatiya Janata Party, in association with the Janasena Party organized a protest, in support of the sarpanches demanding the state government to release the funds from the union government at the district collectorate in Ongole on Thursday. The BJP AP president Purandeswari participated as the chief guest in the protest and said that a majority of the people in the country and state are living in the villages. She said that the state government has shattered the dream of Mahatma Gandhi by breaking the functioning of village panchayats. Instead of taking care of the necessities of the public at villages by adding matching grants, she said that the YSRCP government has weakened the sarpanch system by looting the money in their accounts. She said that many sarpanches elected with support from the YSRCP are now seeking forgiveness from the public as they cannot fulfil their promises. Those sarpanches and contractors, who have spent lakhs of rupees from personal pockets to provide basic infrastructure are now waiting for the release of their bills for years, but there is no response from the government.

Purandeswari said that the state government spent Rs 8629 crores released for the MGNREGS to the state, to construct the Raitu Bharosa Kendras and Village secretariats, instead of the asset development. She said that the YSRCP government also swept about Rs 8000 crores released from the 14th and 15th finance commissions, but announced to release of only Rs 1000 crores after BJP announced support to the sarpanches. She said that the government wants to cut Rs 600 crore from that Rs 1000 crore in the name of the electricity charges pending from the panchayats, but it has no right to do so. She announced that the BJP will lead the agitation until the issues being faced by the sarpanches are resolved in the state.

The BJP AP president thanked the Janasena president, Pawan Kalyan for extending support to the agitation and sending the Janasena cadre to the protest. The BJP Prakasam president PV Sivareddy, BJP leader Lanka Dinakar, Janasena Prakasam president Shaik Riyaz, and others also participated in the protest.