Kotia issue: Odisha's LoP urges Andhra Pradesh CM to maintain status quo
Leader of Opposition inOdisha Assembly P K Naik has urged Andhra Pradesh ChiefMinister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to respect the spirit of co-operative federal structure of the nation and maintain statusquo in border areas ordered by the Supreme Court.
The senior BJP leader in a letter to Reddy on Saturdayalleged that Andhra Pradeshs Vizianagaram districtadministration not only conducted rural polls in the Kotiaregion of Odishas Koraput district, but also tried to holdelections in some villages of Rayagada district.
Naik in the letter also alleged that Andhra PradeshsSrikakulam district administration also tried to conduct pollsin some villages of Ganjam and Gajapati districts andVishakapatnam district administration in some villages ofMalkangiri district.
The Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly allegedthat Andhra Pradesh has violated the status quo order, whichwas passed by the Supreme Court on the basis of consent ofboth states.
“This is not only against the spirit of theconstitution, but also against the spirit of the federalstructure of the country. The activities of Andhra governmentare going against the spirit of the Supreme Court ruling in1968 to maintain status quo,” Naik said in the letter.
The BJP leader, who hails from the Kalahandi district,said that Kotia gram panchayat has always been a part of thehistory of Odisha. The Andhra Pradesh governments demand thatthese areas belong to them is “baseless”, he said Naik said both Andhra and Odisha have a very strongcultural relationship for thousand of years. “We should carryforward our relationship not fighting for the lands,” he said.
The Leader of Opposition also requested the AndhraPradesh chief minister to instruct the three districtadministrations to obey the Supreme Court ruling and respectthe spirit of the cooperative federal structure of the nation.
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