The comments made by Jana Sena Party (JSP) president Pawan Kalyan disparaging village and ward volunteers, who are doing heroic work for the public by bringing the benefits of different welfare initiatives to their doorstep, were vehemently denounced by Minister for Industries and IT Gudivada Amarnath.

He was reacting to the statements allegedly made by Mr. Pawan Kalyan that volunteers were gathering information on girls and widows during their houses visits, in the wards under the jurisdiction, and passing on the same to anti-social elements. This was resulting in the kidnapping of girls and women, the JSP chief alleged.

Addressing a media conference here on Monday, Mr. Amarnath alleged that they were all the JSP chief’s thought, which he was trying to rub on the volunteers. He said that Mr. Kalyan was living up to the name given to him by his father Venkata Rao with his ‘nithya kalyanams’ (marrying multiple women). The volunteers, about 60% of whom were women, were disbursing pensions to senior citizens and widows, and delivering the benefits of various government schemes to the beneficiaries at their doorstep, the Minister said.

He dared Mr. Pawan Kalyan and his friend (obviously referring to TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu) to announce that they would abolish the ‘volunteer system’, if voted to power in the 2024 elections. Referring to the statements of the JSP chief on the ‘Amma Vodi’ scheme that it was the responsibility of the State government to give the benefits of the scheme, Mr. Amarnath sought to know why Mr. Pawan Kalyan had kept his mouth shut when Mr. Naidu had failed to implement the scheme during his five-year term.

On Mr. Pawan Kalyan’s statements that the YSRCP leaders were insulting his mother and wife, the Minister reminded him that it was the TDP leaders, who had commented against his (Mr. Pawan Kalyan’s) mother and wife. He demanded that the JSP chief apologise to the ‘volunteers’ for his disparaging remarks against them.