Alluri fought for exploitation-free society, says Jagan

KAKINADA: Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday said freedom fighter Alluri Sitarama Raju had fought for a society that is free from exploitation, and mobilised the tribals in the agency areas to wage a heroic battle against the British Raj.

The Chief Minister noted that Alluri Sitarama Raju's struggle inspired millions of people in Andhra Pradesh as well the rest of India and to perpetuate the memory of Alluri Sitarama Raju, the state government named a district after him.

Speaking at a meeting to commemorate the 125th birth anniversary of Alluri Sitarama Raju on Monday, Jagan Mohan Reddy said Alluri Sitarama Raju’s ideology was based on the tenets of social justice and his ideology has become immortal.

The Chief Minister presented a bow and a quiver of arrows — the weapons that Alluri used to fight the British — to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Telugu Desam state president K. Achannaidu, meanwhile, faced an embarrassing situation at the meeting. Though he was invited to the meeting by Union minister B. Kishan Reddy and his name was listed in Central government protocol list, the state government got his name removed from the list.

Achannaidu said the name of the ruling party’s Narsapuram MP Raghurama Raju was also excluded from the Bhimavaram meeting. He requested the Union government to install a photo of Sitarama Raju in the Central Hall of Parliament.