Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu reaffirmed the government’s commitment to maintaining law and order (L&O) and punishing anti-social elements as per law. He said he was himself a victim of the YSRCP government’s high-handedness but is against the politics of revenge. The government would firmly deal with those attacking women, and organising fake and obscene social media campaigns.

Making a statement during the discussion on L&O in the Legislative Assembly on Thursday, Mr. Naidu said the policing system had deteriorated during the YSRCP regime and efforts were being made to reform it along with all other departments. He observed that the people elected him for the fourth time as they were aware of his leadership, consensus-building ability and forward-looking governance. The anger of some leaders against the previous government was understandable, but they should refrain from taking the law into their own hands.

He highlighted his role in curbing the menace of faction politics in the Rayalaseema region, and the manner in which he handled the Naxal problem.

The Chief Minister stated that the TDP offices were ransacked, about which complaints were sent to the Union Home Minister and the then Governor, and called upon the people to be wary of criminals disguised as politicians.

Expressing concern over fake campaigns on social media, Mr. Naidu warned that stringent action would be taken against those posting objectionable content, particularly on women, and called it the handiwork of some ‘paid groups’.

Citing the Y.S. Vivekananda Reddy murder case, the Chief Minister maintained that Circle Inspector Sankaraiah, instead of preserving the crime scene, colluded with the criminals and he now has the audacity to issue a legal notice (to Mr. Chandrababu Naidu) for alleged defamation.

Crime rate falls

Mr. Naidu said crimes against women decreased by 4.84% in the last one year. Dowry deaths declined by 43%, murders (of women) came down by 15%, and women suicides, by 59%. A total of 343 persons involved in crimes against women were jailed. He further informed that several measures had been taken to protect women, including reducing the police response time to 8-10 minutes.

The government successfully controlled smuggling of ganja and drugs through the Eagle Task Force, Mr. Naidu said, appealing to the people to stay alert against cyber frauds, noting that even educated people were falling victim to online scams.