TDP pulls out of NDA govt, two ministers to resign from Modi govt on Thursday
ET Online and Agencies|
Mar 08, 2018, 12.12 AM IST
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu tonight asked his party's two central ministers to resign amid the growing strain in ties between his
TDP and the BJP over alleged neglect of the state in the Union budget.
He said his party would come out of the NDA "but party-to-party issue (of ties with the BJP) will be decided later.
The two ministers are--Union Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju and Minister of State for Science and Technology Y S Chowdary.
Addressing reporters at an emergency meeting, Naidu said,"This is the first step. We will go ahead with other actions later."
"We cooperated with the Centre but BJP has done injustice with Andhra Pradesh and now we are withdrawing our ministers from the NDA due to this," Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu announced in a no-holds-barred press conference.
The Telugu Desam Party chief said he tried to speak to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a "courtesy" to inform him about the decision to quit but he did not come on line.
Angry Naidu lashed out at the Centre saying it was "insulting the sentiments" of the people of the state by not honouring the promises made in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014, and also in Parliament.
"Arun Jaitley's statement was the last straw. They are apparently predetermined. They don't appear to help the state," he said.
The decision came hours after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that the Centre can't offer special status to Andhra Pradesh, but would offer a special package with equivalent funding.
"We are committed to giving monetary equivalent to special status to Andhra Pradesh," Jaitley said.
Jaitley had said he agrees with the assessment that Andhra Pradesh was financially suffering after Telengana was carved out of the state and his government will honour each and every commitment made by the Centre at the time of bifurcation.
On Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's demand for fulfilling the promise of giving the state a special status, he said such a category did exist when the state was bifurcated in 2014.
(Inputs from PTI)
He said his party would come out of the NDA "but party-to-party issue (of ties with the BJP) will be decided later.
The two ministers are--Union Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju and Minister of State for Science and Technology Y S Chowdary.
Addressing reporters at an emergency meeting, Naidu said,"This is the first step. We will go ahead with other actions later."
"We cooperated with the Centre but BJP has done injustice with Andhra Pradesh and now we are withdrawing our ministers from the NDA due to this," Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu announced in a no-holds-barred press conference.
The Telugu Desam Party chief said he tried to speak to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a "courtesy" to inform him about the decision to quit but he did not come on line.
Angry Naidu lashed out at the Centre saying it was "insulting the sentiments" of the people of the state by not honouring the promises made in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014, and also in Parliament.
"Arun Jaitley's statement was the last straw. They are apparently predetermined. They don't appear to help the state," he said.
The decision came hours after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that the Centre can't offer special status to Andhra Pradesh, but would offer a special package with equivalent funding.
"We are committed to giving monetary equivalent to special status to Andhra Pradesh," Jaitley said.
Jaitley had said he agrees with the assessment that Andhra Pradesh was financially suffering after Telengana was carved out of the state and his government will honour each and every commitment made by the Centre at the time of bifurcation.
On Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu's demand for fulfilling the promise of giving the state a special status, he said such a category did exist when the state was bifurcated in 2014.
(Inputs from PTI)
