Nellore town witnessed a tense atmosphere on Thursday as YSR Congress Party president Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy toured the district to meet former minister Kakani Govardhan Reddy, who is currently in jail, and former MLA Nallapureddy Prasanna Kumar Reddy, who has recently come under scrutiny and is being targeted by TDP leaders.
With Jagan expected to launch a scathing attack on the Telugu Desam Party — particularly Nellore MP Vemireddy Prabhakar Reddy and his wife Prashanti Reddy — the MP made a noteworthy announcement ahead of the visit.
Vemireddy, a former close aide of Jagan who later distanced himself and joined the TDP to become an MP from Nellore, declared that he is withdrawing from the mining business in the district.
He has faced sharp criticism from YSRCP leaders over his mining activities in Nellore, including a recent plan to set up a quartz factory, which also drew heavy fire from the opposition.
In response, Vemireddy announced his decision to step away from all mining operations. He pointed out that while 96 companies export quartz from Nellore, only his business was being singled out for criticism.
He questioned why he was personally targeted when his quartz factory aimed to provide employment to 1,000 workers. He said that anyone else was welcome to take over the project and that he would support them.
Vemireddy clarified that he no longer has any connection to the quartz factory and warned that any further personal attacks on him would be inappropriate.
Reiterating that he never engaged in illegal mining, he stated that only 19,000 tonnes of mineral had been extracted and exported.
“From tomorrow, those who continue to speak against me must face the consequences. Let God take care of them,” he warned.
He said that despite doing good work, he was being unfairly targeted, which is why he chose to shut down his business.
“This is not out of fear, but because of the baseless gossip in the district,” he added.
Addressing allegations that he used CSR funds for business purposes, Vemireddy clarified that everything was properly documented and there was nothing illegal in his actions.
