Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu is facing a piquant situation in administering the state.
No doubt, Naidu and his party leaders had to face a lot of difficulties from several IAS and IPS officers during the previous YSR Congress party regime, while his party leaders and cadre at the lower-level had to suffer in the hands of the local police officials, collectors and revenue officials who were toeing the line of the YSRCP leaders.
But having come to power now, Naidu has no option but to run the administration with the same bunch of officials.
As far as possible, he enforced transfer of officials in the key positions, but he cannot completely sack them or suspend them, just because they were hand in glove with the YSRCP leaders.
At the lower-level, too, it has become extremely difficult for Naidu to deal with the police officials or other administrative authorities.
He can only transfer them from one place to another place, but not take any action against them, unless any allegations against them are proved.
This has led to the talk within the party that Naidu is lenient towards the officials, particularly the police officers at the lower-level, though they had created a lot of troubles for the party leaders and cadres during the Jagan regime.
This led to a lot of impatience among the TDP cadre. In a message posted on social media, a TDP activist wondered why the chief minister was not bothered about thousands of party workers who had suffered heavily during the YSRCP rule.
“When IAS officer Sri Lakshmi or IPS officer P S R Anjaneyulu came to meet you, you did not even want to see their face, because they had created problems for you in the previous government. You shifted them from their posts immediately,” he said.
“Like you, thousands of TDP workers were harassed by the local sub-inspectors, inspectors, DSPs, MROs and RDOs during the YSRCP rule. Even after the change of the government, they continued to be in the same post. Imagine our plight? We faced physical, psychological and mental torture, much more than what you had undergone. Why are you silent on taking action against these officials?” the TDP worker asked.
He criticised Naidu for saying that his government did not believe in vengeance.
"What is the point in electing you, when you let off officials, who arrested and tortured us in the middle of the night?” he said.
The TDP activist said more than 90% of the party workers were unhappy with the chief minister’s lenient attitude towards the corrupt and sadist officers.
“It is time you wake up and take action against such officials. Otherwise, the party is going to suffer a heavy loss. There will be no meaning for the sacrifices made by the TDP workers to bring the party back to power,” he said.
He pointed out that there have been a lot of conspiracies going on around the new government and the media has been pointing them out every day.
“Just apply your mind for one week and set right the things. Otherwise, the TDP is going to pay a heavy price in the next elections,” he asserted.