Modi assures development to people of Andhra Pradesh, Chandrababu says PM 'arrogant'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday assured people of Andhra Pradesh that they will not be left behind and the government will ensure their welfare and development.

During the no-confidence motion moved by the Telegu Desam Party (TDP), a former ally by of the BJP, Modi said the government stands with the people of Andhra Pradesh and their aspirations. "I want to assure people of Andhra Pradesh that they will not be left behind, and the government will ensure their welfare and development," Modi said.During Modi's entire speech, TDP MPs kept shouting "we want justice" in the House. The prime minister blamed the Congress for the division of Andhra Pradesh in a manner which left the people there unhappy.He said when the TDP decided to pull out of NDA, he had warned its leader N Chandrababu Naidu that his party was "getting entangled in a race of one-upmanship with the YSR Congress.

"Just because of your internal politics with the YSRCP, you are doing this, I had told the AP CM," Modi said, adding that the issue was now being raked up in Parliament. He said his government will keep working for the people of Andhra Pradesh, and "we will do everything possible for the development of the state". NDA government, Modi said, is "committed" towards developing Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. He said the government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee had created Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.

"It was done peacefully. These states are prospering ... The Congress divided Andhra Pradesh and their conduct then was shameful," he said. Earlier, TDP's Jayadev Galla initiated the debate on the first no-confidence motion against the Modi government in four years. Galla ended his speech terming the division of Andhra Pradesh "undemocratic and unscientific". The Andhra Pradesh party had pulled out of the Modi government and the NDA earlier this year after the latter denied its demand of special category status to the state.

Chandrababu 'disappointed'

After the no-confidence motion moved by the Telugu Desam Party was comprehensively defeated in the Lok Sabha, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu once again spit venom at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of displaying "arrogance of power" and resorting to "cheap talk".

Addressing a press conference at the Secretariat here, Chandrababu rued that the prime minister did not promise justice to AP that suffered heavily because of the bifurcation in 2014."Five crore people of AP hoped there will be repentance (on part of the central government) and that it will correct its mistakes. But the hopes were dashed," the chief minister said. "The prime minister is arrogant. He has displayed arrogance of power. He spoke in a manner mocking our state. He indulged in cheap talk," Chandrababu alleged.

The chief minister wondered why the prime minister could not even say he would do justice to AP by rectifying the mistakes."It's extremely disappointing," he added. Noting that the TDP moved the no-confidence motion only as the "last weapon", Chandrababu asserted that the state government's "fight" with the Centre would continue. The chief minister said he would visit New Delhi tomorrow to meet leaders of various parties.