Naidu offers Rs 50,000 for unearthing cash distribution

Hyderabad, Dec 1 (UNI) Even as TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu today promised to offer Rs 50,000 to any party worker for the development of his village, who unearths distribution of cash or liquor by the ruling Congress in the by-elections to Lok Sabha constituencies scheduled for December 4, the Congress today demanded disqualification of TDP candidate L Ramana as a TDP functionary was arrested by police with Rs 5 lakh cash and party material.

Talking to newspersons Mr Naidu alleged that the ruling Congress was distributing money and free liquor to win the by-elections.

On the other hand Congress Vice- President A Chakrapani, General Secretary D V Satyanarayana Rao and party official spokesperson gave a petition to the Chief Electoral Officer demanding that action should be taken against Mr Ramana as at his ''behest, money was being distributed to induce voters in Karimnagar''.

They said in their petition one Mohana Reddy was arrested as Rs 5 lakh was found in his car along with party material in Sircilla in Karimnagar. Even party politburo member T Devender Goud had accepted that Mohan Reddy was their functionary and demanded a thorough enquiry and appropriate action, they added.

Mr Chandrababu Naidu said his party was offering the gift of Rs 50,000 for the development of villages as there was ''no other means to contain the corrupt practices of the ruling party''.

The party worker who would get hold of the ruling party functionaries distributing money or liquor, could choose the area or ward of his village to utilise the gifted money for development.

While the CPI was supporting the Congress, the CPI(M), an erstwhile ally of the Congress during the 2004 general elections was now supporting the opposition TDP.

Meanwhile, Telugu Desam Parliamentary Party (TDP) leader K Yerran Naidu told reporters here that he would like to forget about the controversy raked up by Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister K Rosaiah on the Union government's GO about printing of skull and bones on beedi packets, as he had taken back his earlier statement that he (Yerran Naidu) had supported the GO.

The beedi issue had become emotional in the Karimnagar Lok Sabha constituency by-elections as there were about 2 lakh voters working in the beedi industry, he said.

Reacting to the statements of TDP and TRS leaders making the beedi issue big in the bypolls, state Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy had said that the Act was passed in 2003 when the TDP supported NDA government and the GO pertaining to the Act was issued in 2005 when TRS supremo K Chandrasekhara Rao was the Union Labour Minister.

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