Why Opposition Is Backing Raghurama Raju?

The arrest of rebel YSR Congress party MP K Raghurama Krishnam Raju by the Andhra Crime Investigation Department (CID) police on Friday afternoon triggered strong reactions from the opposition parties than Raju’s own followers.

All said and done, Raju is a parliament member belonging to the ruling party. He defeated the candidates of Telugu Desam Party and BJP-Jana Sena combine in the last elections.

So, his revolt against the party leadership and his criticism against the Jagan government is purely an internal affair of the YSRC.

Yet, the TDP, Jana Sena and the BJP have reacted so wildly that as if the Jagan government arrested their respective party members.

TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu and his party’s Andhra unit president K Atchannnaidu were quick to condemn the arrest of Raju.

Naidu said the arrest of Raju was illegal, at a time when the latter was celebrating his birthday with family and friends in Hyderabad.

“The chief minister is not interested in saving people's lives due to Coronavirus. He is only bent on targeting Opposition leaders with vengeance,” he said.

He went to the extent of describing the Jagan government as a 'terrorist government' which was deliberately using vindictiveness as a weapon to suppress all voices of dissent.

“The vengeful and autocratic activities of this Government was making it challenging for the opposition leaders to fight for the cause of saving the poor people from oppression and exploitation,” he said.

Actor and Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan also issued a statement condemning the arrest of Raghurama Krishnam Raju.

He said the government should focus on bringing down the number of Covid-19 positive cases, rather than resorting to witch-hunting of political rivals.

Similar comments came from the Bharatiya Janata Party and the left parties, too. They said it was nothing but vengeful attitude of the Jagan government against the critics.

There is no big reason why the opposition parties feel so much pain in the arrest of Raghurama Krishnam Raju, who belongs to the ruling party.

May be, they thought they would get some mileage by attacking Jagan for witch-hunting the rivals even during the pandemic period!