Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president and former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on October 21 began his 36-hour protest demonstration against the attacks on his party offices , calling them acts of 'State-sponsored terrorism' and demanding Central government's intervention in the matter to restore peace.
Addressing party cadres on the occasion at TDP headquarters near Mangalagiri, which was ransacked by a mob on October 19, Mr. Naidu said the attacks were a fallout of the criticism of the government's failure in curbing the smuggling of drugs, and its negligence in probing the links to the recent massive haul of heroin at the Mundra port.
He said Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy was himself impatient over the growing public resentment against his government's ineptitude in curbing the drug menace , its retrograde policies and the attacks on democratic institutions and constitutional authorities.
Mr. Naidu maintained that the destruction of the party's main office at Mangalagiri was not a sporadic one but a well organised attack meant to intimidate the TDP leaders who were raising their voices against the government's failures.
It was a culmination of two-and-a-half years of lawlessness and anarchy that had been prevailing since the YSR Congress came to power in early 2019.
Mr. Naidu said the Centre should note that the drug mafia extended their business to Gujarat, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and some other States. Youth needed to be protected, lest drug abuse should become a major scourge in future.
He insisted that the situation was ripe for the imposition of President's rule and pointed out that the TDP was forced to demand it to save the State from Jagan Mohan Reddy's autocratic regime, where there was no scope for dissent.
The Leader of the Opposition mentioned Hyderabad Police Commissioner's statement that cannabis was being smuggled from Narsipatnam, Paderu, Sileru and other places in Andhra Pradesh, and the Telangana Chief Minister's resolve to make his State drug-free.
He further said cannabis worth about ₹8,000 crore was being cultivated in over 25,000 acres in the State and WhatsApp groups are used for delivering the substance throughout India.
The TDP would continue to fight against the drug menace, undeterred by the attacks perpetrated by the government itself, Mr. Naidu said and sought the people's cooperation to make the CM pay a price for his follies.
