VIJAYAWADA: Hitting back hard at the Telugu Desam, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Tuesday said that the Opposition had deliberately created a ruckus in the Assembly for second consecutive day over the Jangareddygudem issue even after the government had given a clarification.
The Chief Minister said the TD leaders should ponder over how illicit liquor could be brewed in Jangareddygudem, with a population of 55,000, when the entire administrative machinery was fully present there.
Reddy said that preparing illicit liquor may be possible in remote places but not in a municipality like Jangareddygudem. He said the government had set up the Special Enforcement Bureau which had registered 13,000 cases which showed its commitment to curb illicit liquor.
Expressing shock over the remarks of Opposition chief N. Chandrababu Naidu on the Jangareddygudem issue, The Chief Minister said the Opposition leader had been making contradictory statements. He said Naidu had claimed that the state government had borrowed Rs 25,000 crore through the Beverages Corporation and also preparing the ground for another Rs 25,000 crore loan but was also stating that the government was encouraging hooch —unmindful of the fact that state revenues would fall if illicit liquor were sold.
The Chief Minister flayed a section of media for distorting his statement on the number of average deaths in the municipality, and said the records made it clear that the death rate is two per cent across the country. With a population of 55,000, Jangareddygudem would witness 1,000 deaths a year or 90 a month. He said the deaths didn’t occur at a single place and happened over a period of one week at multiple locations. The funerals were completed without any problem. “It was the government that took the initiative and ordered post-mortem which shows our sincerity,” he said.
Jagan said Naidu and a section of media have been spreading false information against the government to suit their vested interests. He said the government would welcome the suggestions of the Opposition through appropriate forums.
