Andhra Pradesh Special status row: Two BJP ministers resign from Chandrababu Naidu's cabinet

AMARAVATI: Two Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ministers in Andhra Pradesh Government submitted their resignation in the Chief Ministers office on Thursday, amid the deteriorating relations between Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and BJP.

The ministers, who have submitted their resignation, are State Health Minister Kamineni Srinivas and State endowment minister Pydikondala Manikyala Rao in N. Chandrababu Naidu's cabinet.

The BJP MLAs were given ministerial berths as coalition partner.

Earlier, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader P.V.N. Madhav categorically stated, "Our ministers will resign from Telugu Desam Party (TDP) Cabinet".

"We have decided that our ministers will resign from TDP Cabinet. We will be going to the people and telling them all the things Centre has done for the state. Since independence till date, no state has received as many favours as that were given to Andhra Pradesh," Madhav told ANI.

"We consider Andhra as a special state and has provided it with all development that was needed to be done in all factors. Also, the moment our minister comes out from the cabinet we will break the news to all," he added.

Madhav further noted that injustice was not done to the state by Centre but by other things related. 

The BJP lawmakers had announced their resignation from state cabinet, moments after Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu asked Telugu Desam Party (TDP) ministers to resign from the Union Cabinet.

Soon after Naidu's press conference, BJP MLA Akula Satyanarayana had spoken to media and announced that the two BJP ministers in the state cabinet, namely Kamineni Srinivas and Paidikondala Manikyala Rao, will resign on Thursday morning.

He said both Srinivas and Manikyala Rao would not attend the cabinet meeting to be held on Thursday morning.

Meanwhile, BJP leader Krishna Sagar Rao on Wednesday called Naidu's announcement a 'political opportunism'.

READ | Special status to Andhra Pradesh denied: Telugu Desam Party recalls its ministers at Centre in first step towards NDA divorce

#AndhraPradesh : BJP Ministers in Andhra Pradesh cabinet submitted their resignation in the CM office in Amaravati. pic.twitter.com/0P33Y4S5Uu

— ANI (@ANI) March 8, 2018

"BJP believes what has happened tonight is a classic case of political opportunism and a case of compulsive politics," Rao told ANI.

He also called Naidu's statement, that the central government was not standing up to support Andhra Pradesh, "a blatant lie".

Earlier on Wednesday night, Naidu directed two Telugu Desam Party ministers to resign from Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led cabinet amid the growing strain in ties between his party and the Bharatiya Janata Party over alleged neglect of the state in the Union Budget.

Decided that our ministers will resign from TDP Cabinet. We will be going to the people & telling them all the things Centre has done for the state. Since independence till date, no state has received as many favours as that were given to #AndhraPradesh: PVN Madhav, BJP MLC pic.twitter.com/wsXt6O4mNp

— ANI (@ANI) March 8, 2018

Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju and Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Y. S. Chowdary are the two ministers who have been asked to resign from their respective offices.

"This is our right. The Centre is not fulfilling the promises it made," said Naidu, who has been urging the Centre to give 'special category status' to Andhra Pradesh.

Naidu's reaction came after Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said no to chief minister's demand earlier in the day.