DH Interview | TDP coalition will restore Andhra's glory: Nara Lokesh

Nara Lokesh, TDP’s national general secretary and Andhra Pradesh’s former IT minister, has walked almost 3,132 km across the length and breadth of the state as part of his ‘Yuva Galam’ padayatra. The purpose of the footmarch was not only to rally support for his party but also to demonstrate his leadership capabilities. In an interview with DH’s S N V Sudhir, the Nara scion seemed hopeful of a TDP-led NDA alliance to sweep the upcoming polls in Andhra Pradesh.

What do you think are the prospects of the TDP-led alliance?

It’s going to be a virtual sweep. We expect nothing less than 160 out of 175 Assembly seats and 23 out of 25 parliament seats.

What factors would contribute to this kind of ‘landslide’ victory?

There is a lot of unrest among people. First, youth are very upset about job prospects. The second aspect is the cost of living. Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy has been giving Rs 10 in the name of welfare schemes but on the other hand, he’s taking away Rs 100 from the other hand in the name of taxes and price rise. Thirdly, basic essentials like water, roads, etc., have been ignored. And the fourth aspect is the prevalence of ganja. When the TDP was in power, drugs were never heard of in Andhra Pradesh. But today, ganja is everywhere.

In 2019, you lost in Mangalagiri. How hopeful are you in winning the seat?

Mangalgiri is a seat that the TDP has not won after 1985. The TDP has only won it twice. I have worked extremely hard. Since the day I lost, I have committed myself to the people of Mangalagiri. I have run close to 29 welfare development programmes for them. And the response was good. I am confident that the majority that I will get in Mangalagiri will be among the top three in the state.

CM has been claiming that TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and Jana Sena supremo Pawan Kalyan are scared to face him. That’s why you joined hands. Your take?

See, if there is a robber in your house or neighbourhood, you would go after the thief as a family/community. (But) you would go after them, right? If you are living in a township, you would go after them and beat them up, right? That is exactly what is happening here. We have a chief minister who is not only stealing money but also destroying lives. So, the responsibility is on everyone to ensure that we get rid of him.

TDP leaders are accusing the government of pushing the state into a debt trap to fund its welfare agenda with political intentions. You are also promising such welfare schemes. How do you justify it?

The political intention is that the government should not be pushing the state into a debt trap. The opinion that we hold is very simple that the state must be developed and the benefits of the development should be used for welfare. The first promise that we have given in the manifesto is to create 20 lakh jobs. The jobs will almost double and will increase the state economy by two times. There is a massive opportunity there. So we want to balance both development and welfare, which is what we did in the past.

It appears as if you would also indulge in vendetta politics. The way you have been carrying a ‘red book’ and your assertion that you are noting down names. Your response?

It’s not about vendetta politics. I will take to task people who have broken the law. And that has always been my stance. I’m not going to go like Jagan and put some false cases and put people in trouble. That’s never been the TDP’s stance. Our stance is very clear that whoever has broken the law, we won’t leave them. I have 23 false cases against me. There is an SC & ST atrocities case against me. There’s an attempt to murder case against me. Now just explain to me, how is an official in a rational mind taking such decisions to put false cases against me. They have foisted an attempt to murder case... I mean, isn’t this unfair?