Left parties to stage protests across Andhra Pradesh against Modi’s visit to Vizag on November 11 and 12

The Left parties have decided to stage protests across the State against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to Visakhapatnam from November 11.

The protests would be staged demanding that Mr. Modi announce that the Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) would not be privatised before landing in the Port City.

CPI State secretary K. Ramakrishna, CPI(M) State secretary V. Srinivasa Rao, and Polari of CPI (ML)-New Democracy, Harnath of CPI (ML-Liberation), and Qadar Basha of MCPI (U) were addressing the media here on Wednesday.

“If the arrangements being made in Visakhapatnam are any indication, it appears as though it is a YSRCP plenary,” Mr. Ramakrishna said.

The State government deployed more than 7,000 employees and officials for the Prime Minister’s visit and public meeting, he said.

Though in power for more than eight years, Mr. Modi hardly did anything for the development of the State. In fact, all promises and assurances given to Andhra Pradesh at the time of bifurcation were ignored, he alleged.

The packages for the backward districts had been stopped, and the provisions under A.P. Reorganisation Act were not being implemented, Mr. Ramakrishna alleged. There was no assistance to the Polavaram project. The YSRCP had forgotten all these facts, he said.

“Why are the YSRCP leaders eager to kowtow to Mr. Modi? Why are they eager to offer a red-carpet welcome to him?” he asked.

Mr. Srinivasa Rao said the Left parties decided to stage protests on November 11 and 12 with blag flags across the State. People would teach a befitting lesson and would not allow Mr. Modi to enter Andhra Pradesh again if he failed to announce that the VSP would not be privatised, and tell people what the Central government had done to develop the State, Mr. Srinivasa Rao said.

“Public money is being spent for Mr. Modi’s meeting,” he alleged.