*Naidu makes rules for others, never follows them himself*

Visakhapatnam, May 15: YSRCP Regional Coordinator and former Minister Gudivada Amarnath strongly criticised Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu’s hypocrisy, excessive publicity politics, and pursuing personal agendas at the cost of Andhra Pradesh’s development. Addressing the media at the party city office in Visakhapatnam, Amarnath said Chandrababu Naidu frequently imposes rules and austerity measures on others but never follows them himself. He pointed out that while the Chief Minister publicly called for cutting unnecessary expenditure and projecting “cost-saving measures,” both Chandrababu Naidu and Nara Lokesh travelled separately to Puttaparthi in special chartered aircraft, accompanied by lavish convoys funded by public money.

Amarnath stated that the coalition government is built entirely on publicity, deception, and political theatrics rather than governance. He said Chandrababu Naidu uses every national issue and public event for self-promotion, turning even crises into opportunities for personal publicity. While the government claims to practice austerity, he pointed out that Rs. 6.5 crore was sanctioned for renovation of Chandrababu Naidu’s official residence in Delhi, apart from crores already being spent on his Hyderabad residence and repairs to the Undavalli residence. He also recalled that during his earlier tenure as Chief Minister, Chandrababu’s family stayed in luxury hotels at enormous public expense.

The former minister stated that within just two years, the coalition government has allegedly pushed Andhra Pradesh into debt of Rs. 3.61 lakh crore without implementing a single major welfare promise or showing visible signs of development. He criticised the government for spending over Rs. 80 crore earlier on bus tours and publicity campaigns around the Polavaram project while failing to complete the project itself. He further alleged that the state has spent nearly Rs. 120 crore on special flight travel by the Chief Minister in just two years, with an additional Rs. 60 crore reportedly allocated in the 2026–27 budget. Expenses incurred through frequent charter flights and helicopter usage by Nara Lokesh and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan are separate, he added. Amarnath said that despite RTI requests seeking details of these expenditures, the government has failed to provide transparency.

He remarked that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for austerity and disciplined expenditure has had no impact on the state leadership, which continues extravagant travel and publicity exercises without restraint. He also mocked Chandrababu Naidu’s public advice asking citizens to have more children while allegedly not applying the same standards within his own family, saying people have begun openly recognising the contradiction between the government’s words and actions.

Gudivada Amarnath further criticised Nara Lokesh for turning official and industrial events into political platforms to attack YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and the YSRCP, saying the coalition leadership lacks the basic political maturity to understand where and what should be spoken. He said YSRCP was born out of Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s ideals and commitment to welfare for the poor and weaker sections, whereas the TDP emerged from political betrayal and continues to function for the benefit of big businessmen, brokers, benamis, and vested interests. Referring to Lokesh’s repeated political comparisons, Amarnath stated, “Both are not the same,” and advised him to remember the difference between a party built on welfare ideology and one driven by political opportunism.

He accused the coalition government of systematically exploiting North Andhra while indulging in land politics and real-estate interests centered around Amaravati. According to him, the YSRCP government focused on ports, fishing harbours, healthcare, education, and infrastructure development across the long coastline of Andhra Pradesh, whereas the TDP leadership is more interested in publicity-driven events and commercial exploitation. He alleged that hills and valuable lands across Rushikonda, Endada, Bheemili, Madhurawada, and Simhachalam are being stripped for land and real-estate interests, calling it a large-scale assault on North Andhra.

Amarnath asserted that Chandrababu Naidu’s primary concern is protecting and expanding real-estate interests in Amaravati’s 29 villages rather than addressing the problems of ordinary people. He said the Chief Minister never acts based on public welfare or expert advice but instead operates entirely according to personal benefit and political agenda. He concluded by stating that YSRCP would continue exposing the coalition government’s failures, land exploitation, rising fuel prices, unfulfilled Super Six promises, and publicity-driven governance before the people of Andhra Pradesh.