Actor-politician and Jana Sena Party (JSP) chief Pawan Kalyan on Saturday said that his party would support the farmers in Amaravati, who have been staging protests for close to a month against the Andhra Pradesh government's proposal to decentralise the capital.
"When Karunanidhi built the Assembly in Tamil Nadu, Jayalalitha converted it into a hospital. I had some apprehension and fear in 2015 when the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government had acquired lands in a huge manner. Then, I had asked what will be the fate of the farmers if the next government failed to continue the process, as it may take decades to bring the capital city into reality. My apprehension and fears have come true today," he said.
While TDP President and former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had envisioned a massive capital in Amaravati, the YSRCP government led by Jagan Mohan Reddy is planning to decentralise the capital. As part of its plan, it wishes to set up three capitals — a legislative one in Amaravati, an executive capital in Visakhapatnam and a judicial one in Kurnool.
"JSP has taken a clear decision over the capital city. We have made it clear that the administration should work from one place and development must be decentralised. The YSRCP government must give clarity on the capital city issue. It has to inform people how the concept of three capital cities is possible," Pawan Kalyan said.
The actor-politician added that his party would back the protesting farmers and take up their fight till those who had given up their lands in Amaravati get justice.
Pawan Kalyan also pointed out that the YSRCP had become stronger in the state due to a divided opposition as in 2014, the JSP had extended their support to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and TDP.
In the 2019 elections, all three parties contested alone, which led to a massive win for the YSRCP.