Addressing a public meet held at the Kondareddy Fort here on Sunday, Jana Sena party chief Pawan Kalyan said youth and women would herald change in the State politics.
Responding to criticism that there were no experienced politicians in the party, he said the party would be run by youth.
Referring to the ‘backward region’ tag of Rayalaseema, he said though there had been many Chief Ministers from the region, “It is disheartening the region is still considered backward.”
‘Competitive populism’
He said politics had been ridden with “rowdyisim and factionsim” and that only the Jana Sena was working to cleanse the system. On unemployment, he said only political leaders of the region were employed or owned factories and that youth had been largely unemployed.
Caste and communal politics must come to an end. Muslim people were being forced to affirm their patriotism which was dangerous. “Are Hindus the only people who are patriots?” he asked.
He said certain organisations were trying to take advantage of the Pulwama attack and urged partymen to raise their voice against them. Mr. Pawan said the TDP was trying to buy votes through Pasupu-Kumkuma 2. The manifestos of the TDP and the YSRCP promised sops worth ₹4 lakh crore when the State Budget was only ₹2 lakh crore.
He alleged that Rajya Sabha MP T.G. Venkatesh’s chemical factory had been polluting the Tungabhadra river. The movie star-turned-politician said the party would complete five years next month and he would be in politics for the next 25 years. He spoke about the historical significance of Kurnool, Kondareddy Fort and Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy. Kurnool had a rich tradition of fighting against oppressors, he said and urged party members to remember the history of the city when faced with adversity.