Arrow Sharmila shoots off yatra

YSR Congress Party chief Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s sister and the late visionary leader YSR’s daughter Sharmila described herself as the arrow released by her brother Jagan before kicking off her historical 3000 km long Maro Praja Prasthanam from Idupulapaya in YSR district on Thursday.

Launching her mega foot march, Sharmila said her Padayatra has two objectives. The first one is to highlight the failures of the Government and the second one is to question TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu’s failure in introducing no-confidence motion against the non-performing Government of Kiran Kumar Reddy, she said addressing the crowds.

She said she is the arrow released by her brother Jagan. “As YSR’s daughter and Jagan’s sister and also as an ordinary worker of the YSRCP, I am launching my Padayatra and I request you to accompany me during the Yatra and support it,” she appealed to the people who gathered in thousands to witness the Yatra launching.

Coming down heavily on TDP president Chandrababu Naidu, Sharmila said Naidu failed to keep the two promises that brought the party into power. “TDP promised to implement the Rs.2 kg rice scheme and introduce complete prohibition but Naidu failed on both the counts,” she said, adding that Naidu had no intention of keeping his promises then. “Now also, he has no intention of keeping his promises now,” she said.

She said Naidu had completely forgotten the farmers during his regime and neglected agriculture and the farming community. “During the Naidu’s regime, several farmers committed suicides unable to pay the loans,” Sharmila said and asked whether Naidu is not sinful and responsible for the suicides.

TDP regime enhanced power charges eight times in the eight years and Naidu called the agricultural sector a waste, she thundered.

Accusing Naidu of enacting a yellow drama and shedding crocodile tears, Sharmila castigated Naidu saying neither TDP nor Naidu is sincere in his padayatra. “If he is so sincere about the failures of the Government, why didn’t he introduce a no-confidence motion against this Government which has failed on all counts?” Sharmila roared amid cheers by the mammoth crowd.

Sharmila accused Congress and TDP of conspiring against Jagan who has gained unfettered popularity and jailing him. “Unable to bear Jagan’s growing popularity, they have been in cahoots against Jagan and jailed him while Naidu himself has been managing to come out the cases filed against him through his secret meetings with Union Minister Chidambaram and other leaders.

(Updated on Oct 18, 2012)