Amaravati, March 25 – Former Chief Minister and YSR Congress Party president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday expressed strong support for the proposed amendments to the Women's Reservation Act, 2023, aimed at enabling its implementation by 2029.
In a post on the social media platform ‘X’, he welcomed the move to ensure 33 per cent reservation for women in the Assembly and Lok Sabha, calling it a significant step toward strengthening women’s political representation in the country.
Reaffirming YSRCP’s longstanding commitment to women’s empowerment, YS Jagan stated that the party has consistently taken proactive measures to promote women’s participation in governance by implementing 50 per cent reservation for women in local bodies, nominated posts, and nomination-based works and service contracts.
He emphasised that empowering women to emerge as leaders at every level of democracy has always been a core principle of the party’s governance approach.
Welcoming the initiative, he expressed confidence that such measures would further advance gender equality and create greater opportunities for women in public life.
Meanwhile, addressing a meeting of YSRCP leaders from Addanki constituency at the YSRCP central office, Jagan Mohan Reddy strongly criticised Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu for what he called indulging in blatant credit theft and misleading propaganda over the ArcelorMittal steel plant.
The former Chief Minister said that the groundwork for the steel plant was laid during his tenure and not by the present government.
He stated that during his Davos visit in 2022, he had met with Aditya Mittal and reached a preliminary understanding to set up a steel plant in Andhra Pradesh.
He added that the company had also agreed to invest Rs 4,800 crore in the Greenko project in Kurnool and that multiple locations, including Nakkapalli, were shown to the company, which was finalised before the elections.
YS Jagan questioned why Chandrababu Naidu was not speaking about the Bulk Drug Park project in Nakkapalli, which was brought during his tenure after competing with several states.
He alleged that the present government deliberately created land disputes, leading to the stagnation of the project and loss of potential investments and employment opportunities.
Criticising the coalition government, he said it had failed to implement any of its election promises and had scrapped all welfare schemes introduced earlier.
He remarked that the super six schemes had become a complete deception, adding that people were now openly discussing the failure of governance.
He further alleged that within two years, the state’s debt had crossed Rs 3.37 lakh crore, with no visible welfare delivery. He claimed that revenue was not reaching the state treasury and that large-scale corruption was taking place in sectors such as liquor, sand, and mining.
He also said that the education, healthcare, and agriculture sectors were in decline, with students dropping out, hospitals withdrawing services under Aarogyasri, and farmers suffering due to a lack of remunerative prices.
YS Jagan also spoke about future opportunities for party workers, stating that the proposed increase in Assembly and Parliament seats would create more leadership roles, especially for SCs, STs, and women.
He assured that in “Jagan 2.O ,” party workers would receive greater importance and opportunities.
He expressed confidence that public dissatisfaction with the present government would lead to its defeat in the next elections.