Andhra Pradesh's YSRCP government on Saturday took possession of Praja Vedika, located adjacent to Leader of Opposition and former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu's residence in Amaravati. The Telugu Desam Party termed this as “vendetta politics” and the party alleged that the government showed no courtesy to the former CM and that his belongings were thrown out of the building.

Naidu has been staying at the house in Undavalli on the banks of river Krishna since 2016 when Andhra Pradesh shifted its administration to Amaravati from Hyderabad. The 'Praja Vedika' (people's grievance cell) was built by the government in 2016 through the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority (APCRDA) as an extension to the then Chief Minister's residence. Built at a cost of Rs 5 crore, it was being used by Naidu for official purposes as well as to hold party meetings.

Earlier this month, Naidu wrote to Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to allow him to use the structure to hold meetings. He urged the government to declare the property as residence annexe of the Leader of Opposition.

However, the government on Friday decided to take over the Praja Vedika, even as Naidu was holidaying abroad with his family members, and announced that the Collectors Conference will be held there. The conference, the first since the YSCRP came to power, was earlier scheduled to be held at the state Secretariat. The move came close on the heels of a statement by YSRCP legislator Alla Ramakrishna Reddy that Naidu will be made to vacate the house as it was built illegally on the river bed.

TDP leader and Legislative Council member Ashok Babu alleged that government staff threw out personal belongings of Naidu. He alleged that the party was not informed about the government's decision to take over the premises.

Municipal Administration Minister Botsa Satyanarayana, however, taunted the TDP to say that Naidu would be treated in the same manner as Jagan Mohan Reddy was treated when he was the Leader of Opposition. Satyanarayana reached Praja Vedika when TDP's Andhra Pradesh unit president Kala Venkat Rao was addressing the media to criticise the government for the manner in which it took over the premises.

Satyanarayana said after losing power, Naidu should have gracefully left and it was not proper to say that Praja Vedika belonged to him as it was not his personal property.

TDP senior leader and former minister Y Ramakrishnudu termed the government's action in taking possession of Praka Vedika as witch-hunting. "The government has deliberately resorted to this action. If it did not want to give Praja Vedika, it could have communicated the same in writing," he said.