Naidu refuses Reddy's appeal to end fast

HYDERABAD: TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu has refused to call off his indefinite hunger-strike even as Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy appealed him to end the fast as the government was addressing the problems faced by farmers.

Expressing concern over the deterioration in Naidu's health, Kiran Kumar Reddy said in a statement here tonight that he tried to speak to Chandrababu personally over phone from New Delhi but the latter could not be reached.

"I am, hence, appealing to you through the media to call off your indefinite hunger-strike. The state government is sincere about addressing the farmers' concerns and has already announced financial relief," the chief minister said.

The government was considering all farmer-related issues raised by the opposition parties, he added.

The TDP, however, rejected Reddy's claims and asserted that Chandrababu would continue his fast, which was into the third day today, till the demands he raised were conceded.

"If the Chief Minister was sincere, he could have sent a government delegation to the fasting leader and give an assurance on the demands. Instead, the government was trying to disturb our leader's hunger-strike," TDP senior MLAs Dhulipalla Narendra Kumar and Payyavula Keshav alleged.

Why would 55 farmers end their lives across the state in the last six days if the financial relief announced by the government was adequate, they asked.