Opposition parties in AP welcome minister's arrest

The Opposition parties demanded that five other ministers facing allegations of corruption in Jagan's case and related cases also be arrested forthwith.

"Nobody who has done something wrong cannot escape (punishment)... Be it legislators or ministers," Leader of Opposition and TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu remarked.

Many people were landing in jail due to the greed of one individual (Jagan), he pointed out, referring to the arrest of bureaucrats, industrialists and others in corruption cases.

He also demanded that all controversial Government Orders related to allocation of land for Vanpic Ports Project be cancelled immediately.

It was in connection with the Vanpic project that Mopidevi was arrested today. He, as the then Minister for Infrastructure, Investment and Ports under Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, was accused of doling out undue favours to the project promoter by overlooking the state Cabinet decisions.

CPI-M Politburo member and state secretary B V Raghavulu welcomed the arrest of Mopidevi but said only his arrest was raising certain doubts.

"The other ministers who were responsible for issuing 26 controversial GOs also should be arrested immediately," he said.

"Mopidevi's arrest was expected. It was inevitable as well as necessary," CPI state secretary K Narayana said.

The minister turned a deaf ear to his plea not to alienate lands for Vanpic Ports and deprive fishermen of their livelihood, Narayana pointed out.

"So far only bureaucrats went to jail in corruption cases but now the turn of ministers, the prime culprits, has come," the CPI secretary observed.

Pradesh Congress Committee president and Transport Minister Botsa Satyanarayana said he would react to his colleague's arrest only after looking into all aspects. "It is painful when such things happen," Botsa noted.

State Secondary Education Minister K Parthasarathy regretted that a minister belonging to the backward classes was arrested.

"Ministers will have to act as per the instructions of the Chief Minister. In such cases, the actual beneficiaries are someone else but innocent people are being hauled up," Parthasarathy observed.