Vijayawada: On Sunday, it was the turn of YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy to join the war of letters. In response to BJP chief Amit Shah’s letter to Telugu Desam chief N Chandrababu Naidu, and the latter’s response to the letter in the State Assembly on Saturday, Mr Reddy wrote an open letter on Sunday in which he said the contents of Mr Shah’s letter came as a surprise.

“The points discussed in the letter are surprising. Without offering industrial exemptions meant for special status states, and without considering the fact that the debts of the state had increased from `97,000 crore to Rs 2.25 lakh crore, how can they decide that special package is equivalent to special status? Why did you deviate from the Special Status? Why did Mr Naidu accept it? How can you say that Mr Naidu had accepted the package without considering the industrial exe-mptions and the fact that the state’s debt had increased to Rs 2.25 lakh crore within four years,” he questioned.



He added that the state did not get special industrial benefits, 100 per cent exemption from income tax, GST exemptions, and rebate in power charges meant for special status states.

“Without these benefits, how can we compete with cities such as Bengaluru, Chennai, and Hyderabad? It is a known fact that all these cities had taken 60 years for their development. Without these incentives, how can anyone be willing to set up an IT hub or a hospital or an industry in Andhra Pradesh? Without these, how can our kids get employment? Before state bifurcation, the then party in power and the opposition party had come to the consensus that granting the special status is a pre-condition. The BJP and the TD also said that special status will be accorded to the state. During the election campaign in Tirupati, Mr Modi also promised to accord the special status to the state. The concept of the special status was included in the TD-BJP manifesto as well,’ Mr Reddy said in the letter.

Instead of Mr Naidu complaining that the Central government has done nothing for the state and his party has done so much, it should be understood that the state can only survive because of the special status. Without the exemptions, our kids will not get jobs,” Mr Reddy wrote.