Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu came to power by accusing his predecessor and YSR Congress party president Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy of institutionalising corruption and looting the state and has been giving a projection that he is providing clean and corruption-free rule.
Be it his so-called free sand supply policy or mining of minerals or allotment of liquor shops, Naidu has been creating the impression that he is doing everything in a transparent manner.
But the ground realities are said to be different, if one were to go by the reports from the grassroots level.
The TDP leaders, right from the ministers to the MLAs to lower-level functionaries, they are said to be virtually looting the resources to make big money.
Of course, this massive corruption is not coming to light much for various reasons.
First, the TDP leaders, unlike the YSRCP leaders during the Jagan Mohan Reddy regime, are not targeting the common people in their acts of omission and commission; so, the public are not bothered much about their looting at higher level.
Secondly, the TDP leaders are also managing the local YSRCP leaders from whom they have learnt the tricks of the trade. Though they differ with each other politically, they are hand in glove in looting. So, the YSRCP leaders at the ground level are also silent.
Thirdly, the TDP leaders have silenced the local media reporters – at every stage by greasing their palms regularly, so that their settlements or corrupt deeds do not get highlighted in the media. Since the TDP leaders are following live-and-let live policy, everything is going on smoothly, sources said.
Interestingly, this corruption is not confined just to the local TDP leaders, but even big leaders at the state level. Some of the TDP leaders also have stakes in the companies owned by the YSRCP leaders.
“A young minister from central coastal Andhra is glaringly doing settlements. In the last four months, they have looted hundreds of crores,” sources added.
