YSRCP chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Hyderabad: A day after the Andhra police had booked YSRCP chief, Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy for death of a party activist Singayya during his visit to Sattenapalli recently, the former Chief Minister strongly criticised chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, accusing him of degrading the standards of politics in Andhra Pradesh.
In a post on X on Monday Jagan raised a series of pointed questions regarding the deliberate restrictions placed on his recent tour to Rentapalla in the Sattenapalli constituency in Palnadu.
He questioned why opposition leaders like him are being stopped from visiting their own party workers or expressing solidarity with farmers and citizens.
He reminded Chandrababu Naidu that neither he nor Pawan Kalyan ever faced such restrictions during their past tours when Jagan was in power.
He said this political vendetta now threatens not just democracy but basic decency.
Jagan emphasised that Z+ security for a former Chief Minister is not a favour but a protocol-based right, just as it applied to Chandrababu in the past and should apply to anyone in future. He pointed out that he followed all rules and gave prior information to the authorities about his visit, yet the state failed to provide the necessary security arrangements.
He questioned why there were no pilot vehicles or rope parties deployed during his visit, which are part of the standard Z+ security protocol. If the security arrangements were in place, he asked how could anyone have come under the vehicle. He demanded clarity. Did the government fail to provide security, or is the claim that someone was run over false?
Eyewitness account of Singayya’s death
YSRCP leader Dasari Veerayya, who was present during YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s Palnadu visit, has expressed serious doubts about the nature of Singayya’s death. Veerayya on Monday talking to media clarified that when they saw Singayya, he had only minor injuries and appeared conscious. YSRCP members offered to take him to the hospital in an auto, but ASI Rajashekar intervened and insisted on using an ambulance.
Veerayya said they collected Singayya’s details and informed his family. He said there were no head injuries and only a small visible wound near the collarbone. He questioned how such injuries could have turned fatal and commented that under the current "Red Book Constitution," anything is possible.
Kotesh, an advocate who was also present at the scene, said that the injuries looked like those from a two-wheeler accident. He used his umbrella to shield Singayya and strongly objected to the SP’s public statement, which seemed to shift the blame from one vehicle to another, now implicating YS Jagan’s car. Kotesh said such statements were irresponsible and confirmed that the matter will be taken up legally.