The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Naidu goes all out to woo women

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 05, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Naidu goes all out to woo women

By Suresh Krishnamoorthy

TANDUR (RANGAREDDY DISTRICT), APRIL 4. The Telugu Desam Party president, N. Chandrababu Naidu, on Sunday pulled out all the stops in his bid to woo women voters and repeatedly underscored the need for women to be empowered and given equal opportunity.

Addressing a series of five public meetings since afternoon in Tandur, Pargi, Vikarabad and Chevella of Rangareddy district and Kosgi in Mahbubnagar district, he paid special attention to the women in the gathering and had a word of praise for them.

Mr. Naidu said the `Deepam' scheme of the State Government would continue until each and every poor household had a gas stove and cylinder. He said that apart from providing the women with a stove and cylinder, the Centre and State Governments were taking steps to reduce the price of fuel. `We are doing everything for women,' he reiterated.

Speaking on the naxalite problem in the State, he appealed to the extremists to lay down arms and join the mainstream of society. He lashed out at the Congress and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi and dubbed their alliance as `opportunistic.' "If they are elected and come to power, they will sell away the State," he warned.

Mr. Naidu harped on the `development approach' of the Telugu Desam and recalling the NDA Government's focus on infrastructure development, repeated his appeal to the people. More than once, he pointed out to P. Mahender Reddy, the TDP nominee for the Tandur Assembly seat and member in the dissolved Assembly, and Subhash Chanderji, Deputy Mayor and the BJP nominee, for the Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat.

Unmindful of the pouring rain at Tandur, people stayed back to listen to Mr. Naidu, who arrived 75 minutes behind schedule. Incidentally, all the three of his visits to Tandur in the past three years were marked by heavy rain.

The Home Minister, T. Devender Goud, said the election this time round, was a battle between development functionaries and those with an `anti-development stance.' The TDP-BJP combine would not rest until every village had water and power, a school, a hospital and an approach road, he said.

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