Rajya Sabha member Chintakayala Vijay on Wednesday said the foundation for TDP’s bond with the Backward Classes (BCs) had been laid with the provision of 34% reservation for those communities in the local bodies in 1987 by then Chief Minister N.T. Rama Rao.The bond had since become stronger than ever before as the TDP went on to implement a slew of welfare schemes for the BCs, he added.In contrast, the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) had reduced the quota for BCs in the local bodies from 34% to 23.14%, thereby robbing them of over 16,800 posts. This showed the YSRCP’s hollow claims to be supportive of the BCs, he argued.Addressing the media at the TDP central office at Mangalagiri, Mr. Vijay said his own elevation to the Upper House of Parliament was a testament to the genuine commitment of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and HRD Minister Nara Lokesh to the uplift of ordinary BC workers, and criticised the YSRCP and the Congress party for treating BCs as a vote bank.He alleged that the YSRCP government had not allocated a single rupee and did not provide minimum facilities for the 50-plus BC Corporations. It had diverted the BC Sub-Plan funds and cut down on loans to the BC communities, he alleged.The YSRCP was playing the BC card to divert attention from the ongoing Enforcement Directorate probes into their liquor scams and complicity of its leaders in various other scandals, Mr. Vijay said, warning the YSRCP of far worse plight in the 2029 elections if it did not change its ways.‘Jagan spreading lies’Meanwhile, Minister for Excise and Mines & Geology Kollu Ravindra condemned YSRCP president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy for spreading blatant lies and fabricating stories about the prevailing weather in the State.He pointed out that El Nino was not impacting Andhra Pradesh alone but the whole country, and to grapple with it, the government had drawn up its priorities with due focus on mitigating the damage to the agriculture and allied sectors.Mr. Ravindra questioned why did the YSRCP MLAs stay away from the Legislative Assembly if they really cared about public issues, and what did Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy achieve for the people by holding press meets outside.The government was providing ₹20,000 annual financial assistance to farmers and tenant farmers and taking various market intervention measures to solve the problems being faced by the farmers with due focus on protecting them from the fury of El Nino. Published - August 26, 2026 08:15 pm IST