Chaotic scenes led to the abrupt end of a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan called by senior Congress politician and Rajya Sabha member V Hanumantha Rao after he asked security personnel to remove reporters from Telugu Daily Sakshi from the premises.
Mr Hanumantha Rao had called for the press conference to pin the blame for the adverse verdict given by the Krishna Water Dispute Tribunal on former chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy and to lash out at the ‘Jal Deeksha’ which was taken up at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi by former Kadapa MP YS Jaganmohan Reddy.
The senior leader’s tantrum and the subsequent eviction of the Sakshi reporters came after he was asked a pointed question, purportedly against Congress party In Charge for Andhra Pradesh Affairs M Veerappa Moily.
Earlier, Mr Hanumantha Rao spewed venom against YSR, holding him directly responsible for the adverse verdict given by the Tribunal and for the impending water crisis in Krishna Delta.
The Rajya Sabha member condemned Mr Jaganmohan Reddy’s Jal Deekha in New Delhi against the verdict of Krishna Dispute Water Tribunal and said that due to fault policies adopted by former chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy, the state had lost its genuine share in Krishna waters and got raw deal. After losing its share of waters, the former MP, son of YSR, was shedding crocodile tears, he alleged.
He also alleged that YSR had stated once that the state needs no surplus waters from Krishna River for the Delta region and had deputed inefficient lawyers to represent the state’s case before the Tribunal.
Mr Hanumantha Rao added that these inefficient lawyers had failed to argue the case properly.
The Rajya Sabha Member, who has been a known YSR detractor in his lifetime but had never objected to any of the policies implemented during his lifetime, lashed out against the former chief minister by saying that he had misled the High Command and mismanaged funds given by Centre on many occasions.
Though Mr Hanumantha Rao’s words would come as a jolt to many Ministers and leaders in the ruling party who are keen to portray themselves as the political heirs of the popular former chief minister, his harangue about YSR’s alleged misrule continued when alleged that thousands of acres of farmers lands were occupied illegally and given for establishment of Special Economic Zones, during YSR’s regime. He added that in these ‘so-called Special Economic Zones’, entrepreneurs have failed to set up industries and provide employment.
The senior Congress leader added that the High Command would initiate strong disciplinary action against those MLAs, who participated in the Jal Deeksha of Jaganmohan Reddy in New Delhi.
The PCC chief had already sent a report on list of participants to high command, he pointed out.
It was at this moment when the press conference turned chaotic. A Sakshi reporter asked Mr Hanumantha Rao whether there was any truth to the rumours that Union Law Minister and In-Charge of AP Affairs Veerappa Moily gave a bribe of Rs 100 crore to Tribunal chairman Justice Brijesh Kumar for giving favourable verdict on Karnataka.
The question perhaps caught Mr Hanumantha Rao off guard and he shot back at the reporters, “Why did you come here? Who invited you to this press conference? I have not invited Sakshi reporters. Do not ask any questions and whatever I say, you have to note down.”
The reporters told him that they were invited to the press conference by the Gandhi Bhavan staff and not by him.
The angry leader told the security personnel to remove the Sakhsi reporters from the premises and walked out in a huff.
The press conference ended abruptly with noisy scenes.