Modi govt's attitude 'dictatorial' towards states: TDP

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) on Tuesday adopted a new political resolution in which it lambasted the Modi government for its "dictatorial" attitude and vowed to unite regional parties to take on the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

The resolution read: "The Centre is weakening the financial condition of states... The unilateral style of functioning of the Modi government has led to loss of trust of states in the central government. The states feel that the concept of federalism is only on paper."

The "dictatorial" attitude of the Modi government, its "unilateral and anti-people decisions, misuse of central intelligence agencies and regulatory agencies to suppress political opponents have become a matter of grave concern in the Indian polity", it read.

"On the occasion of the swearing-in ceremony of H D Kumaraswamy, leaders of various political parties had assembled in Bangalore as a token of solidarity among regional political parties.

"N Chandrababu Naidu was a tall leader in this meet and it was a clear indication that regional political parties are going to be a power to reckon with in the 2019 elections as an alternative to national parties to form a government in Delhi," the TDP resolution said.

"We ended the alliance with the NDA only in the interests of the states... The BJP is resorting to conspiracy to destabilise us. We are not afraid of anyone. Ready to sacrifice everything.

"We will not stop until Andhra is given special status and the Polavaram project completed," Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said in his concluding address at Mahanadu, the TDP's three-day annual conclave here.

"The Centre has not been releasing funds for Amaravati because it does not want a world-class capital city to come up in Andhra Pradesh. Then why should we pay taxes to the Centre at all?" he asked.

He also rubbished the opposition's criticism that his government was spending all the money at its disposal on developing Amaravati, the proposed ultra-modern state capital, at the cost of other developmental works.

Ratcheting up his attack on the Centre, he said, "In 2014, the unemployment rate was 3.4 per cent and now it is 6.23 per cent. Where is the 'sabka sath sabka vikas' that Modi promised to the people of the country."

He also denounced the Congress for "not doing justice to the people of Andhra and Telangana" at the time of the bifurcation of the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh.

"We asked the Congress to do justice to Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, but they did not do it. They lost in both the states," he said.

"TDP will bring drastic changes in national politics. Will win all 25 LS seats in 2019 elections, NDA won't come to power," Naidu said.

State Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu said the Modi government was taking "dangerous steps" against constitutional values and that it would be "dethroned by united regional parties" in the 2019 general elections.

He also said that former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and BJP veteran L K Advani respected the Constitution, but Modi and party chief Amit Shah were "destroying the democratic system" in the country.

"The Modi government's policies are against secularism. The ruling party uses RSS cadres, who have a fascist mentality. It is also spoiling fiscal and political values," he alleged.

"There's no democratic system under the Modi government. We respected Vajpayee and Advani who revered and protected the Constitution. But then came the Modi-Shah duo. They destroyed the entire democratic system," the minister alleged.

The Centre is interfering in the working of the 15th Finance Commission, he told reporters.

The Modi government is taking "dangerous steps against constitutional values and the TDP will unite all regional parties to stop it in 2019", Ramakrishnudu alleged.

The BJP government would be "dethroned" by an amalgamation of regional parties, he said, but parried a query on who would be the prime ministerial face if a united front comes into being.

Declaring Yeddyurappa, who was implicated in corruption cases, the chief minister of Karnataka, supporting people such as "mining mafia" Gali Janardhan Reddy and Y S Jaganmohan Reddy and preaching against corruption is a joke by the BJP government, the TDP leader said.

"Yeddyurappa, Janardhan Reddy and Jaganmohan Reddy, who returned from jail, appear to be role model for BJP leaders," the TDP said.

Open support to Jaganmohan Reddy to "weaken the court cases against him is a glaring example of the BJP's encouragement for the people who are causing hindrance in the projects of the Andhra Pradesh government", it said.

Approaching the NGT on flimsy grounds, false cases against the Polavaram project and delays in release of funds by the government are examples of collusion between the BJP with the YSRCP, Naidu's party alleged.

The "political manipulations" witnessed in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh at present are glaring examples of the BJP's conspiracy to weaken efficient leaders in the state, the TDP alleged.

By using the Finance Commission, the Modi government started "causing losses the progressive states".

"The Finance Commission is a Constitutional body which independently distributed the resources to states and the Centre as per Schedule 7 of the Constitution.

"However, the recent guidelines of the 15th Finance Commission reveal that the terms of reference prescribed by the Centre hit the financial capabilities of the states," the TDP said in its resolution.

PTI