YSRCP cannot shake foundations of TDP: Chandrababu Naidu

The ruling YSRCP in Andhra Pradesh cannot shake the foundations of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) by conspiring and slapping false cases against its workers and leaders, TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu said on Thursday.

Naidu, while addressing a political conclave here, also demanded Bharat Ratna for TDP founder N T Rama Rao for his outstanding and multifarious contribution to the poor people, cinema and the socio-political life of the country.

In this regard, a resolution was also passed during the two-day digital conclave, which began on May 27.

"Nobody can shake the foundations of the TDP because it has a strong place in the hearts of poorer sections and backward classes right from the party's inception," the TDP said in a statement quoting Naidu.

Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy's conspiracies and his YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) filing false cases will not "frighten" TDP workers and leaders who are ready to fight back with "self-respect and self-confidence", Naidu, a former chief minister, said.

He said as an opposition party, the TDP is fighting against anti-people policies of the YSRCP-led government but false cases are being filed to harass the TDP cadre.

"Even the media is being threatened with a black order while social media activists are being implicated in false cases," Naidu said.

"False cases are being filed and attacks are being continued, but the TDP cadre will not surrender to the ruling party's intimidatory tactics," he added.

Naidu recalled that in 1989, the TDP had met with a crushing defeat with a nine per cent vote margin but in 1994, the party came back with a resounding victory with a massive 17.7 per cent vote margin, and the Congress could not get even the opposition party status at that time.

When the N T Rama Rao government was dismissed undemocratically during late prime minister Indira Gandhi's time, a ‘Save Democracy’ agitation was run for 30 days which went down as a historic event in the political history of the country as a whole, he said.

Expressing concern about ill-treatment and humiliation meted to a Dalit doctor, Naidu said accused the YSRCP for "presiding over goondaism and rowdyism in order to frighten all sections of people and then to plunder the resources of the state."

Naidu said Reddy's "rule of atrocities" cannot continue for long considering the strong democratic foundations of India.