HYDERABAD: United by a controversial anti-media Government Order 938, the entire Opposition on Friday demanded resignation of Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy for feigning ignorance over its issue and suspension of the officials behind it.

Soon after the House was adjourned for the day, the Opposition members raised slogans demanding halt to attack on freedom of the press and condemning the Government for imposing "undeclared emergency". They marched to the Mahatma Gandhi's statue on the premises and staged a dharna there.

An agitated Leader of the Opposition, N. Chandrababu Naidu and floor leaders of TRS, CPI (M), CPI and BJP, said the Government would not be allowed to wash off its hands by claiming that there was no issue after the GO was annulled. It should clarify what made it issue this "dangerous" GO. It exposed the dictatorial tendency of the Chief Minister to control and intimidate the media.

Black day

Mr. Naidu described the issue of GO, a black day in the State history and ridiculed the Chief Minister's claim that he was "not aware". He recalled that the decision on the GO was taken at a meeting of the "media watch" chaired by Dr. Reddy. In the past too, the Chief Minister claimed that the lands in his estate at Idupulapaya belonged to Dalits and that he signed the order seeking clemency for Congress leader Gouru Venkat Reddy charged with murder, without seeing it.

The GO grants sweeping powers to officers with the Information department, reduced to the status of an agency, to prosecute and hound the media in the name of defamation. "The next step is to send a censorship officer to the media offices to check what they are writing or telecasting, reminiscent of the Emergency".

TRS leaders K. Vijayarama Rao and N. Narasimha Reddy, said by his actions, the Chief Minister demonstrated that he had lost grip over administration. "We will rise above political differences to fight against the draconian order."

N. Narasimhaiah, CPI (M) floor leader, said it was surprising that the Government was embarking on such patently undemocratic methods. Chada Venkat Reddy, leader of CPI, said the Chief Minister could not feign ignorance as the GO was issued after discussing it for over three months.

G. Kishen Reddy, leader of the BJP, said the Congress would have to pay a heavy price for daring to bring out such a GO.

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