Andhra Pradesh Home Minister Anita Vangalapudi must resign, opposition YSR Congress Party leader Roja has declared, pointing to criticism of her performance by Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, whose Jana Sena is an ally of Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP.
Over 100 incidents of crimes against women have been reported in 120 days, Roja claimed, telling reporters Tuesday, “We have been saying this (what Mr Kalyan said). And now Deputy Chief Minister has said Home Minister has failed to ensure law and order in the state.”
“In just 120 days (there have been) over 100 incidents of attacks on women. What is the Home Minister going to say about this? Pawan Kalyan pointed to her incompetence. This government has not used the Disha mobile phone app (for women’s safety) or women-only police stations brought in by the YSRCP government. Will Home Minister resign?” she asked.
The fresh political storm comes close on the heels of allegations animal fat was used make laddoos, or devotional offerings, ‘fed’ to the deity and given to devotees at the temple in Tirupati.
On Monday Pawan Kalyan accused Ms Vangalapudi of incompetence, and said he could take over her portfolio if the law-and-order situation in the state does not improve. The warning came amid a spike in crimes against women and children, and included a reference to Uttar Pradesh.
Policing in the southern state, he declared, should follow the example of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s administration, which recorded 65,743 cases of crimes against women in 2022 – the most of any state in the country – according to the National Crime Records Bureau.
“You (Ms Vangalapudi) are the Home Minister… discharge your duties well or I will be forced to take over Home Department as well,” the actor-politician – who has taken a hard right stance in recent weeks, including on the ‘sanatan dharm’ row – said in his Pithapuram constituency.
“You need to be like Yogi Adityanath. MLAs are not just here to ask for votes. You have responsibilities too. Everybody needs to think… It is not that I cannot ask for or take over Home Department. If I do, things will be very different… we have to be like Yogi Adityanath.”
Pawan Kalyan’s outburst – which included demanding action from the police and a warning to TDP and Jana Sena leaders to work together – followed a horrific crime in Tirupati district.
A four-year-old child was allegedly raped and murdered by a family member.
Responding to Mr Kalyan’s warning, Ms Vangalapudi said she took his comments in a positive light and that he was encouraging her to be aggressive in stamping out crime.
“Pawan Kalyan asked, ‘Will you not arrest if an accused belongs to a particular caste?’ I have taken his comments very positively. I have responsibility. I hold a critical portfolio. It is like he is backing me up, saying you can go ahead more aggressively,” she told reporters.
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