TDP has been demanding for central funds for Andhra Pradesh under special status.
Hyderabad: Chandrababu Naidu's two ministers will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi later this afternoon to hand over their resignation. The BJP's two ministers in the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister's state cabinet have already quit. Mr Naidu had last night announced his decision to pull out his Telugu Desam Party's ministers from the centre, hours after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley ruled out "special status" for Andhra Pradesh. TDP lawmaker Ravindra Babu told NDTV that the next "logical step" is to exit the BJP-led national alliance NDA, but Chandrababu Naidu seemed to leave options open, saying he would "plan further course of action" based on the Centre's reaction to his decision.
Here are the top 10 updates on this big story:
- TDP lawmaker Ravindra Babu told NDTV that the next "logical step" is to exit the BJP-led national alliance NDA, but Chandrababu Naidu seemed to leave options open, saying he would "plan further course of action" based on the Centre's reaction to his decision.
- The two TDP ministers in the central government are Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju and Minister of State for Science and Technology YS Chowdary. Their resignation letters, which, sources said, are expected to articulate the TDP's resentment, were reportedly drafted in the Andhra Chief Minister's office in Amravati.
- In the assembly today, Chandrababu Naidu said: "Our ministers in the central cabinet and BJP ministers in our cabinet have resigned."
- The two BJP ministers in the Naidu government, Srinivasa Rao and T Manikyala Rao, resigned on Thursday morning.
- At an emergency press briefing on Wednesday night Chandrababu Naidu said the TDP has taken the "painful decision" to withdraw its ministers from the Centre in the interest of the state, as it was left with no other option. The TDP joined the NDA just ahead of the 2014 national elections.
- "I went to Delhi 29 times, met Prime Minister and Central Ministers and requested them to fulfil our demands," said Mr Naidu. "When the intended purpose (of joining the Union Cabinet) has not been served, there is no point in continuing. For me the sole agenda is to safeguard the interests of the state."
- The chief minister also said he tried to speak to PM Modi on phone as a courtesy to inform him about the decision to pull out of the government. "It is my responsibility as a coalition partner to inform the prime minister about our party decision. My OSD spoke to his OSD but the prime minister did not come on line," he said.
- On Wednesday evening, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said the Centre was happy to give Andhra Pradesh funds, but said giving it "special category status" as demanded by Mr Naidu was not possible. "The Centre cannot say now that all the funds that I have will now be given to the states and I have no money because after all the security of India is a Central responsibility," said Mr Jaitley.
- Chandrababu Naidu said Mr Jaitley's words were "hurtful and insulting," alleging that they suggested that the TDP was "asking for money at the expense of the country's Defence Budget... Jaitley spoke like we asked for all the money. We felt insulted."
- The TDP has been deeply upset since Mr Jaitley presented the Union Budget last month, complaining that it neglected Andhra Pradesh. The party faces extreme pressure in the state ahead of assembly elections and the national election next year, with opposition parties accusing Mr Naidu of failing Andhra Pradesh by not ensuring special status for it as a partner at the Centre. Andhra's political parties say nothing short of "special status" will do as that was promised to the state when it was bifurcated to carve out a new state Telangana, leaving what was left of Andhra Pradesh in a deep revenue deficit.
TDP lawmaker C Ramesh wearing a t-shirt with six demands written on them.
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