VIJAYAWADA: Vijayawada Central legislator Malladi Vishnu on Sunday criticised Telugu Desam chief N. Chandrababu Naidu and BJP state president Somu Veerraju for spreading lies about mandapams and pandals during Vinayaka Chavithi celebrations.
Speaking to media here on Sunday evening, Vishnu said the state government has not framed any new rules on setting up of mandapas for Lord Ganesha. He accused Veerraju and Naidu of spreading rumours that the state government is collecting fees for setting up the pandals. He urged authorities to book the two leaders for spreading lies.
The MLA underlined that no fee is being collected from those setting up pandals. He recalled that during TD rule, the then government authorities collected ₹1,000 for supplying electricity up to 500 MW load. However, when Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy took over reins of the state, this fee had been reduced to ₹500.
Vishnu alleged that Veerraju and Naidu are only trying to gain some political mileage by raising the matter.
