Andhra Pradesh MLA Rajanna Dora has triggered a row on the longstanding border dispute between Odisha and Andhra Pradesh by making one-sided claims that the residents of villages in Kotia gram panchayat of Koraput district want to be part of Andhra Pradesh.
The Salur MLA in his Facebook post has claimed that Kotia residents have expressed their willingness to join Andhra's dominion through a letter. "The people of Kotia have submitted request letters to the Vijayanagaram district Collector and Parvatipuram ITDA saying that we all will be in Andhra," Dora wrote.
He further stated that even though the border row between Odisha and his State has been a long-term issue, former Andhra Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu was unable to resolve it.
He however praised the incumbent CM Jagan Mohan Reddy for taking preemptive measures to sort out the differences.
However, Dora praised Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for holding a meeting with Jagan in this regard on November 9.
Meanwhile, following the development, Jeypore MLA and Congress leader Tara Praad Bahinipati has come down heavily on Dora for making such claims at a time when a unanimous decision has been taken to constitute a high-level team to find a solution over claims of ownership in the bordering villages.
Launching a scathing attack on the Andhra MLA, Bahinpati urged the latter to stop misleading the people of Kotia and Odisha. "Odisha is a State of peace and brotherhood. So the Saluru MLA should not try to split the Odia and Telugu communities in our ssate through 'divide and rule' policy, he said.
Bahinpati urged the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister to take disciplinary action against the Saluru MLA over his comments.