Naidu challenges Jagan,seeks resignation over Heritage charges

Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday offered to resign from the MLA post if the ruling YSR Congress could prove that the retail chain Heritage Fresh belonged to his family.

"If you cannot prove the allegation, Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy loses the right to continue in his position.

I am demanding that Jagan Mohan Reddy accept my challenge," the Leader of the Opposition said in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly.

The issue came up during a short discussion on the price of onions when the chief minister and members of the ruling party referred to the commodity price in the open market, particularly in the Heritage Fresh outlets.

"I clarified yesterday that Heritage Foods and Heritage Fresh are different entities. Heritage Fresh has been taken over by the Future Group.

Still, you are making baseless allegations, the former chief minister fumed.

Finance Minister Buggana Rajendranath intervened and read out a newspaper article related to the stake sale in Heritage Fresh and claimed that Naidu's family still held a share in it.

Civil Supplies Minister Kodali Srivenkateswara Rao and other members lashed out at the TDP chief for throwing a challenge to the Chief Minister.

"...he (Naidu) is used to politicising everything for petty gains," Srivenkateswara Rao said.

The chief minister said no other state was offering onion at a highly subsidised price of Rs 25 a kg at a time when the market rate was hovering between Rs 80 to 100 per kg.

"Under the market intervention scheme, our government has procured 38,496 quintals of onions from various markets and has been selling them through Rythu Bazaars across the state."