No-confidence motion in Parliament: Jayadev Galla cites Mahesh Babu-starrer to target ruling party

Telugu Desam Party’s Member of Parliament Galla Jayadev, who initiated the debate on the no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha , left those watching flummoxed after he referred to the blockbuster Bharat Ane Nenu in an attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party.

The film starred Jayadev’s brother-in-law and popular actor Mahesh Babu.

The industrialist-politician kicked-off the debate with the mention of the movie to stress the point before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government that “promises should be kept”. “The latest Telugu blockbuster Bharat Ane Nenu which means ‘I Bharat’ is a story about an young NRI who returns to India after his father, who is a chief minister, dies suddenly. Bharat enters politics reluctantly and becomes a young, dynamic and beloved Chief Minister,” said the Guntur MP.

“The recurring theme in this movie is about trust and his mother’s advice (which) Bharat keeps recalling. A promise is a promise. If a man makes a promise and does not keep it, he does not have the right to call himself a man. It was a blockbuster because the general mood of people reflects well in this film. People are tired of empty assurances and unfulfilled commitments,” he said.

Jayadev further said that both the BJP and Congress governments had betrayed Andhra Pradesh as neither party granted the state a special category status. He also said that Andhra Pradesh was languishing in services and had been reduced to an agrarian state after bifurcation.

News18 quotes Jayadev as saying, “It is not a war between the TDP and the BJP, but between morality and majority. Motion of no-confidence is against the lack of fairness, lack of trust, lack of unbiased approach towards Andhra Pradesh. The option to vote for Andhra Pradesh lies open now. You want to vote for a clean, corruption-free Andhra Pradesh by voting for us or choose to go for the rival opposition party and push Andhra Pradesh into corruption. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whom we trusted so dearly, has deceived the state.”

Jayadev, whose family owns Amara Raja Group, is the son-in-law of veteran Telugu actor Krishna, father of Mahesh Babu. One of the wealthiest MPs, Jayadev had declared assets of Rs 683 crore during 2014 elections.

His mention of Mahesh Babu’s movie triggered varied reactions on social media. Some remarked that Jayadev is trying to promote his brother-in-law’s movie, while others commented that this goes on to show how politics and films are deeply intertwined, especially in Andhra Pradesh.

With inputs from IANS