Andhra Pradesh - Vijayawada   

YSR takes pot shots at media

By Our Special Correspondent

VIJAYAWADA AUG. 31. The Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, was at his sarcastic best when he took pot shots at the electronic media at a press conference at Hotel Punnami in the city on Tuesday. Referring to the issue of the purported remarks of the Minister for Endowments, M. Satyanarayana Rao, with regard to the transfer of the District Collector and the Commissioner of City Police, the Chief Minister observed the it was the electronic media which 'misreported' the Minister's observations. "Mr. Rao is a fine gentleman... All that he said was that the Government would take a view on the transferred officials after the enquiry report was received. "However, it was some of you who poured sympathy on the Collector, K. Prabahakara Reddy, and said he was a good man.

The Minister also agreed with you. "What is wrong in it? If the inquiry report says that the officials are not guilty, we will certainly do the needful."

News channels

"We are, in fact, under severe pressure with the advent of 24-hour news channels.

You need something to telecast. Wherever we go, you people thrust your mikes towards our mouths. What do we do?" he asked.

Dr. Reddy went on to quote a Telugu anecdote while observing that the statement of Mr. Satynarayana Rao was not fully carried.

"It is like Raamunitho Kapivarunditlaniye being broken as Raamuni Thoka Pivarunditlaniye," he said amidst a loud laughter from the presspersons, officials and elected representatives.

Dig at TDP

Dr. Reddy grew restive when a reporter sought to know his reaction to the reported demand by the TDP that a cenotaph be built in the memory of the five persons who were killed in the stampede on the opening day of Pushkarams.

Reacting sharply to the question, he said: "Let the TDP build a memorial for the 16 persons who were killed in the stampede at Sammakka-Sarakka Jathara on behalf of their party.

"Then, we will also consider doing something on those lines on behalf of the Congress, if there is space available anywhere nearby the scene of occurrence."

To each his views

To a query on the observations made by the CPI's assistant secretary, K. Narayana, that the Chief Minister did not have control over his Cabinet colleagues, he said: "That is his view. I do not have anything to say on this."

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