Amaravati capital land deals row: YSRCP MPs stage protest, demand CBI inquiry

Demanding CBI inquiry in the "Amaravati capital land scam" and the Antarvedi temple incident, YSRCP MPs on Friday staged a protest in front of Mahatma Gandhi's statue in Parliament complex premises. Alleging an "insider trading" took place in the Amaravati capital region during the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) regime, YSRCP Lok Sabha MP Krishna Devarayalu Lavu spoke to ANI and said that some people purchased land in a location where the capital was going to come up.

"There was insider trading that had happened and the previous government misled people over the location of the capital. In the meantime, some people purchased land in a location where the capital was going to come up. We have formed an SIT," the MP told ANI.

"Based on findings of SIT, we have moved the High Court to start proceedings in this case," he added.

Meanwhile, Rajya Sabha MP V Vijayasai Reddy said that Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy would be coming to Delhi to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others to discuss these issues.

READ: Jagan's '3-capital' journey: From opposing Andhra's bifurcation to decentralising capitals

Antarvedi temple incident.

The wooden chariot of the famous Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple at Antarvedi in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh was gutted in a fire mishap in September 6. The state government ordered an inquiry into the incident to establish the cause of the fire and has appointed Endowments Additional Commissioner Ramachandra Mohan as the inquiry officer. He has been asked to coordinate with the police and determine the cause of the fire, Endowments Minister Velampalli Srinivas said.

The 40-feet high chariot made of teak wood was parked in a shed on the temple premises. The chariot is normally used only during the 'Radhotsavam' at the Lords celestial wedding festivities. Police said they were investigating whether an electrical short circuit caused the mishap or if any arson was involved.

Amaravati land scam

After coming to power in May 2019, the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) had pointed fingers at the previous TDP government, claiming that the latter had resorted to ''insider trading'' by leaking out information about the location of the new capital. This information was allegedly misused by top TDP leaders who purchased huge tracts of land in and around Amaravati at cheap rates.

Soon after the government in June 2019 set up a cabinet sub-committee, which found that public servants within the TDP-led government had allegedly misused their positions to pre-determine the new capital's location. Using this information they purchased large areas of lands illegally to benefit their associates, companies, businesses, family members and political party members.

 READ: Andhra Pradesh: BJP demands judicial inquiry in Antarvedi incident; slams YSRCP's inaction

(Image credits: ANI)