Published Feb 19, 2026 | 7:42 PM ⚊ Updated Feb 19, 2026 | 7:42 PM
YS Jagan addressing the press. (Screengrab)
Synopsis: The former Chief Minister said manifesto promises had been treated as “discarded paper.” Jagan contrasted this with his government’s implementation of welfare schemes during the Covid-19 crisis. “We delivered on our promises unlike the present coalition government,” he said.
YSRCP president and former chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday, 19 February, launched a blistering attack on the Andhra Pradesh government, alleging that its 2026–27 Budget was riddled with “distortions, half-truths and deception.”
Speaking to media persons at the party’s central office at Tadepalli near Vijayawada, he said in the budget the promises made under the much-publicised Super Six, Super Seven and in the TDP’s Manifesto vanished into thin air.
The Budget, he alleged, had failed every section of society. “If deception had a face, it would be Chandrababu,” he said, accusing Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu of repeating falsehoods.
He questioned the government’s claims of high growth. “If growth is real, people must feel it. Their income must rise. Purchasing power has to improve. But has that happened?” he asked. He pointed out that though the government had projected revenues of ₹1.19 lakh crore for 2024–25, actual receipts stood at ₹94,937 crore. In the first 10 months, the state earned only ₹75,964 crore.
Citing data of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), Jagan Mohan Reddy said Andhra Pradesh ranked 22nd among 23 states in own tax revenue growth. “We are almost at the bottom. Yet the Chief Minister claims that we are racing ahead in GST growth at 11.75 percent,” he said. Revenue due to the state, he alleged, was not flowing into the exchequer but into “private pockets.”
He also accused the ruling leadership of extravagance. “Helicopters and aircraft for the Chief Minister. The same for Nara Lokesh. Naidu’s ally Pawan Kalyan also can fly at will,” he said, criticising what he described as wasteful expenditure even as welfare commitments shrank.
On public debt, the former chief minister said the government had stopped presenting full details in the Budget documents. He recalled that in 2014, state debt stood at ₹1.47 lakh crore. By the time Naidu demitted office in 2019, it rose to ₹3.90 lakh crore. “The YSRCP government borrowed ₹3.31 lakh crore over five years, he said. But in just 18 months, the present coalition had accumulated ₹3.17 lakh crore in fresh debt. They speak against borrowings but are breaking records in doing exactly that,” he remarked.
The former Chief Minister said manifesto promises had been treated as “discarded paper.” He contrasted this with his government’s implementation of welfare schemes during the Covid-19 crisis. “We delivered on our promises unlike the present coalition government,” he said.
On pensions, he alleged that beneficiaries had fallen from 66.34 lakh before the 2024 election to 60.96 lakh after the new government took office — a cut of over 7.45 lakh pensions. “Not a single new pension sanctioned. Two lakh applications pending,” he claimed.
Turning to education, Jagan Mohan Reddy cited Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE) data showing 78.41 lakh students in 2023–24. If each was to receive ₹15,000 annually, the allocation should be over ₹13,000 crore. “But allocations don’t match announcements. Budget speeches say one thing. Documents show another,” he alleged, accusing the government of diluting the Talliki Vandanam scheme.
On free bus travel, he said that the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) operated 16 categories of services but concessions applied only to five, and even those came with restrictions.
As for free LPG cylinders, with 1.59 crore active consumers in the state, providing three cylinders annually would cost around ₹4,000 crore per year, he pointed out. “Where is the money? Allocations are slashed,” he said.
On Annadata Sukhibhava, he alleged that 53.59 lakh farmers were promised ₹20,000 annually. “In two years, ₹40,000 should have gone to each. They gave only ₹10,000,” he claimed, adding that nearly seven lakh farmers were excluded.
He accused the government of weakening agricultural support systems, dismantling Rythu Bharosa Kendras (RBKs) and delaying payments. “We ensured procurement and credited money within 21 days. Now middlemen are back,” he said.
Quoting official figures, he claimed that in 2025 alone, 393 farmers and 2,472 agricultural labourers died by suicide.
In higher education, he said that against a requirement of ₹8,500 crore for fee reimbursement and hostel support, only ₹2,071 crore had been released. Government employees, too, were suffering, he alleged, with ₹35,000 crore in dues pending and no revision in pay scales.
He lashed out at the present dispensation for imposing cuts on welfare initiatives such as Aarogyasri and Nadu-Nedu, and flagged reports of poor-quality mid-day meals leading to illness among students. “Promises were made. Numbers were presented. But the truth is in the finer details,” he said.
(Edited by Sumavarsha)
