Opposition leader and YSR Congress chief Y S Jaganmohan Reddy began his indefinite fast to seek special category status for Andhra Pradesh, as arrangements have been made at Nallapadu on the outskirts of Guntur city on Wednesday.
According to reports, Jagan was scheduled to launch the fast at Nallapadu at around 10:30 am, after conducting pujas at the Kanaka Durga Temple atop Indrakeeladri in Vijayawada.
However, later reports suggest that he missed his flight from Hyderabad to Vijayawada and decided to travel by road instead. Jagan reached the venue four hours late and adressed a huge crowd that had gathered, explaining to them, the benefits of a 'special status.'
Many leaders from the YSR Congress party including Botcha Satyanarayana and Vijayasai Reddy addressed a gathering of reporters in Guntur on Tuesday, and criticized the ruling TDP party for failing to build pressure on the Centre and going back on its promise of achieving special category to the state.
Ridiculing the state's assurance that the Centre would grant special 'packages' to Andhra instead of the status, Satyanarayana asserted that the state must be granted a 'special status' at it was specified in the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014.
Meanwhile, the TDP attacked Jagan for launching the indefinite fast, at a time when people’s expectations were high on the proposed capital, the foundation stone for which, would be laid soon.
The YSR Congress had earlier planned to hold the fast from September 26 in Guntur, but the administration and police repeatedly denied permission for it, citing traffic hassles.