The sudden U-turn by Lourdu Mary, wife of Cheeli Singaiah — who died after being run over by YSR Congress Party president Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy’s convoy during his visit to Palnadu last month — has come as a shock to the Chandrababu Naidu-led government in Andhra Pradesh.
On Wednesday, Mary met Jagan at the YSRCP office and raised doubts about the circumstances surrounding her husband’s death.
She claimed that Singaiah had suffered only minor injuries and suggested that something might have happened during his transport to the hospital in the ambulance.
Reacting strongly on Thursday, Chief Minister Naidu stopped short of criticizing Mary directly but accused Jagan of coercion.
“It’s clear that Jagan summoned her to the party office and pressured her into issuing a statement favorable to him,” Naidu alleged.
He further claimed that Jagan did not even stop his vehicle after the incident and that YSRCP workers treated Singaiah with utter disrespect.
“They dragged him away like he was a stray dog. Now, they’re using his wife to politicize the matter. Are they even human?” Naidu asked.
Slamming the YSRCP leadership, Naidu called them "criminal-minded" and said they pose a grave threat to democracy and decency in politics.
Speaking from Kuppam, the Chief Minister said the YSRCP was attempting to twist facts and turn lies into truth.
He compared the incident to the murder of Y S Vivekananda Reddy, alleging, “They killed Vivekananda Reddy but falsely accused me. This is their modus operandi—it should be a case study.”