YSR Congress party president Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, who took over as the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh last week, has been saying right from the day one that he would continue to pursue with the Centre on securing special category status to the state.
He even told the officials of the finance department to work out yet another representation seeking special category status to AP.
“It is going to be on the top of the agenda for us, whenever we go to Delhi with a representation,” he said.
The chief minister is planning to take up this issue again with Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he receives the latter at Tirupati on Sunday.
However, Bharatiya Janata Party is understood to have sent a clear message to Jagan that there is no point in talking about the special category status at all, as it cannot be granted under any circumstances.
“Special category status to Andhra Pradesh is a closed chapter and there is no point in Jagan taking it up with Modi again. We don’t mind if Jagan asks the Prime Minister again and again, but it is not going to yield any results,” BJP Andhra Pradesh unit president Kanna Lakshminarayana said.
He said the Prime Minister was ready to extend whatever assistance the state required, but not the special category status.
“Let Jagan ask for funds liberally for the development of the state and Modi will consider it positively. But not, special category status,” he said, adding that if YSRC chief still claims he would get the status, it would only amount to cheating the people.
