By IANS
Hyderabad : The central leadership of the Congress party Wednesday ruled out change of leadership in Andhra Pradesh even as the war of words between the ruling party and the Left parties over the latter’s land struggle intensified.
Digivijay Singh, who is the All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary and in charge of party affairs in the state, turned down the demand by Left parties to remove Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy.
“We don’t appoint or remove chief ministers at the behest of the Left parties,” he told newsmen.
The Left parties, especially the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), have been demanding the chief minister’s resignation over the July 28 police firing on its activists at Mudigonda in Khammam district.
Seven CPI-M activists were killed when police opened fire to disperse a violent mob during an agitation seeking distribution of land among poor.
Singh, who arrived here on a two-day visit, held talks with the chief minister and state Congress president K. Keshava Rao. The visit and the talks were significant in view of the left parties’ plans to intensify their three-month old ‘bhuporatam’ or land agitation.
“The land issue is a promise made by the Congress party to the people of Andhra Pradesh and it will be resolved as per the party’s commitment to the people of the state,” Singh said.
Congress sources said Singh ruled out talks with left parties over the issue. Referring to senior party leader V. Hanumanth Rao’s meetings with left leaders during the last two days, he clarified that the party leadership had not sent any leader as its emissary.
The national leaders of the Communist Party of India and CPI-M Monday met Congress president Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi to demand the distribution of surplus government land among poor and implementation of the Koneru Ranga Rao committee report in this regard.
The Left parties recently announced that they would launch the second phase of the land agitation Aug 21 and their national leaders would also take part in it.
During the agitation, the activists of the two parties and their supporters have been occupying government lands and erecting red flags. The encroachments have led to clashes with police at several places during last three months.
Meanwhile, the war of words between Congress leaders and the left parties intensified Wednesday with CPI state secretary K. Narayana threatening to put up a red flag on Keshava Rao’s house.
“If necessary, we will put up red flag on Keshava Rao’s house,” Narayana told newsmen. He was reacting to a statement of Congress president criticising the land agitation.
“If the Left parties occupy the historic Charminar and erect red flags over it, will we handover Charminar to them?” Keshava Rao asked while accusing the Left parties of encroaching private lands.