Y S Reddy, Naidu lock horns over property issue

Hyderabad, Mar 28 (UNI) Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy today locked horns with Leader of the Opposition N Chandrababu Naidu in the State Assembly over property owned by them.

The wrangle started during the discussion on the Appropriation Bill when Mr Naidu intervened and branded Dr Reddy as a ''land grabber,'' a charge stoutly denied by the Chief Minister.

Irked by Dr Reddy's charge that Mr Naidu had ''illegally acquired housing plots at a concessional rate from the state government through two housing societies by giving a false affidavit,'' Mr Naidu challenged the government to conduct a judicial probe by a sitting judge into the assets owned by each other.

Dr Reddy retorted asking, ''am I a land grabber or that gentleman who had admitted in the House he had sold away assigned lands in his possession?'' He said when he came to know that he and his family possessed assigned lands, he surrendered them.

Mr Naidu maintained neither he nor his family members had sold any assigned lands.

The Chief Minister said he had purchased the land in question from a trust of the Nizam's granddaughter.

Even after the High Court and the Supreme Court cleared the decks, the previous TDP government had not regularised it.

''What is wrong in constructing a commercial complex on the land now?'' Dr Reddy asked.

Meanwhile, government Chief Whip N Kirankumar Reddy demanded Mr Naidu should surrender one of the two housing plots received from the government at concessional rate as it was ''illegal'' and liable for prosecution.

Retorting, Mr Naidu said the Congress government, which had ordered probe into 22 cases against him, could not prove anything and he was ready to face any inqury by the government.

UNI SM SJ AE AS1917