Amaravati: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy, who has been fighting for special category status to the state, plans to stick to his demand at the Niti Aayog meeting on June 15.
Reddy, who will leave for Delhi on Friday, has instructed his officials to prepare a comprehensive report, detailing why the Centre should give special status to the bifurcated state.
In an interview with News18, Reddy had maintained that the special status was compulsory to generate employment and attract industries as well as ensure overall development of the state.
The Reddy-led YSRCP has also raised the contentious issue in Parliament. The party had proposed a no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha in March 2018, following which all five party MPs had resigned to protest against the Centre’s failure to accept their demand.
The party recently swept the Lok Sabha elections, winning 22 of the 25 seats in the state. Reddy met Prime Minister Narendra Modi after his win, asking him to consider their demand. He also raised the issue during Modi’s Tirupati tour.
The special status was one of the key assurances given by former prime minister Manmohan Singh in the Rajya Sabha during the second UPA regime. The BJP too had insisted on the same.
However, after coming to power, the BJP-led NDA government remained non-committal on the issue. PM Modi had earlier said the Finance Commission and Niti Aayog had denied the status to Andhra Pradesh.
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