'My silence isn't incapability': Balakrishna responds after convoy was blocked in Hindupur

A day after a group of people stalled his convoy in Andhra Pradesh's Anantapur district, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MLA Nandamuri Balakrishna has responded stating that he had exercised restraint during the situation. 

On Thursday, Balakrishna made a visit to his Hindupur constituency, where a group of protesters who supported the YSRCP government's proposal to decentralise the capital, confronted the actor-politician and raised slogans urging his party to change it's stand on the issue.

Balakrishna who made a visit to Hindupur from Bengaluru faced the ire of several locals and YSRCP activists who held placards and raised slogans near Rahamat circle. The police present at the spot intervened and pulled away the youth who were attempting to stop Balakrishna's convoy, before dispersing them and restoring normalcy.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Balakrishna said, "Governments might change but development should not get stunted. I'm of the opinion that we should have one state and one capital."

He further added, "All the regions were developed equally earlier (during the TDP regime). For the first time, unnecessarily, a rift between the regions is being created."

He has also warned that YSRCP leaders that they should not take his silence as an incapability.

"Yesterday, though they were 25 to 30 people, we acted with patience because that is our culture. We should not encourage such acts of road rage. We had over 1000 people behind me. One gesture would have been enough," he said.

Balakrishna further took a dig at Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy for going back on a decision by his father and former CM YS Rajasekhar Reddy and passing a resolution in the Assembly and abolishing the Legislative Council. He said that TDP will show it's strength in the upcoming local body elections in the state.

On Thursday, the protesters raised slogans against Balakrishna and TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu alleging that they were stopping development of the region by opposing the decision of the YSRCP to set up three capital -- an executive one in Visakhapatnam, a legislative one in Amaravati and a judicial capital in Kurnool.

Villages in Amaravati region of Guntur district are witnessing protests for over one month against the shifting of capital.

However, the YSRCP has gone ahead with its plan and two bills have been passed by the state Legislative Assembly -- the Andhra Pradesh Decentralisation and Inclusive Development of All Regions Bill, 2020, and the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA) Act (Repeal) Bill.