2 former ministers engage in verbal duel

Vijayawada: The two former ministers of Telugu Desam and YSR Congress Party Nadakuditi Narasimha Rao and Mopidevi Venkata Ramana engaged in a verbal duel at a media conference here on Wednesday.

Mopidevi blamed the TDP for not recognising the fishermen community as STs while accusing the TDP leaders of attacking them recently under the veil of tribals in Srikakulam. But the senior TDP leader and former minister Nadakuditi Narasimha Rao took strong objection to the comments of Mopidevi. He said the comments should not be made to gain political mileage.

Reacting to the comments of Nadakuditi, Mopidevi Venkata Ramana said the meetings or press conferences should be held separately on different platforms for explaining facts. He also said as to how the tribals could attack suddenly against the agitating people of fishermen community. The leaders of Telugu Desam were behind the incident, he alleged.

However, the two leaders kept mum after some time when some leaders pacified them. Both the leaders finally said that they would protect the interests of fishermen community by mounting pressure on the government to include them in scheduled tribes list.