Centre won’t sit quietly: BJP MP Sujana Chowdary reacts to three capitals for AP

BJP Rajya Sabha member Sujana Chowdary criticised the Andhra Pradesh government’s proposal to have three capitals in the state to promote decentralised administration. Mr. Chowdary, who visited Amaravati on Sunday to interact with the protesting farmers, said the centre would not ‘sit silently’ in this regard. The farmers have been protesting that the government has backed out on its promise of getting developed plots in the capital and said that they felt cheated.

In a public statement, MP Sujana Chowdary urged people from all the thirteen states of Andhra Pradesh to protest against the government’s move. He said that the centre knows when to use its power and would do so when the time comes. Chowdary said GN Rao committee’s recommendations were ‘incomprehensible’ and stated that the farmers and contractors who lent their lands for the Amaravati project must be compensated adequately. However, he questioned the credibility of the current YSRCP-led government on whether it could do so.

The Rajya Sabha MP was a key leader in the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and also a close aide of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu when the idea of Amaravati as the state capital was conceived. He shifted to the Bharatiya Janata Party later.

Earlier this month, an expert committee headed by GN Rao filed its final report about the three proposed capitals of Andhra Pradesh. The committee recommended three capitals for the state — a legislative capital in Amaravati, an executive capital in Visakhapatnam and a judicial capital in Kurnool. The state government awaits a committee report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) post which an announcement will be made about the state’s capital city.