Roads and Buildings Minister BC Janardhan Reddy revealed in the Legislative Council that a total of 2,524 statues have been installed in public places in the state without permission. He clarified that no new statues have been allowed to be installed so far as per the GO issued in 2019. The minister said that special orders have been issued to the collectors on the statues installed without permission.
He assured that appropriate action will be taken after examining them as per the guidelines. TDP MLC Bhumireddy Ramagopal Reddy, who participated in the question and answer session, alleged that public funds were misused and statues of former Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy were installed illegally in Pulivendula.
He was furious that crores of rupees were wasted in the name of “development of YSR statue intersections” in the previous government. Similarly, TDP MLCs B. Tirumal Naidu and Alapati Rajendra Prasad also raised questions on unauthorized statues. They urged the government to take action against the installation of statues without permission across the state.
Opposition leader Botsa Satyanarayana strongly objected to the comments of the TDP members. He accused them of speaking in a way that would denigrate former Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy. In protest, he announced a walkout from the House. Other MLCs responded and criticized Botsa’s behavior. Tension prevailed in the House due to the criticism of the TDP members and Botsa Satyanarayana’s response.
Although the issue of installing statues started as a common administrative issue, it gradually led to political arguments. Especially in the case of YSR statues, allegations of misuse of public funds were made and the atmosphere in the House heated up as YSRCP representatives objected to them.
Meanwhile, the Minister clarified that government permission is mandatory before installing statues in public places, otherwise steps will be taken to remove them. The Minister said that orders have already been issued to identify the statues installed illegally and take appropriate action by the Collectors. He said that decisions will be taken keeping in mind both the emotions of the people and legal provisions.
