Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader and former minister Nakka Anand Babu on Thursday advised Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy led the Andhra Pradesh government to refrain from alleged rampant misuse of the SC, ST Atrocities Act for political vendetta.
He claimed that the government is using this legal provision to suppress the principal opposition party and all the dissenting voices in the state.
“Jagan regime was indeed hatching a conspiracy to get the atrocities law revoked at the national level. Already, the Supreme Court received petitions about the political misuse of this law by the ruling Governments across the country,” said Babu.
The TDP leader asserted that the Supreme Court could take a serious view of the alleged ongoing indiscriminate misuse of the SC/ST law.
He questioned whether the government was making a mockery of the SC/ST law by applying it on the former minister and TDP leader Devineni Uma Maheshwar Rao.
“CM was not just getting cases filed against the political opponents but he was also getting them jailed,” he alleged.
According to Babu, Reddy ‘opened a dark chapter in the history of the country’ by allegedly getting SC, ST atrocities cases filed against Dalit victims as well.
He demanded an explanation from the Chief Minister as to why he was allegedly misusing the laws created to safeguard Dalits from political and personal victimization.
“The atrocities law was brought in to ensure prevention of atrocities against Dalits. The CM has been openly misusing this law. The Dalit officers were being used to perpetuate political harassment,” he alleged.
He claimed that Reddy came to power with Dalit votes but he was allegedly using them to create chaos in the state.
Babu noted that Dalits were facing unprecedented attacks and victimization ever since Reddy came to power.
“For just opposing sand mafia activities, Dalit youth Vara Prasad was tonsured and humiliated in East Godavari. SC, ST cases were filed against Dalit farmers in Amaravati and they were sent to jail for 20 days. They were handcuffed by the AP police,” he alleged.
Babu made these remarks in the light of the police arresting Rao for allegedly attacking YSRCP leaders.