YSR Congress Party is furious with CPI Narayana for dismissing them as a corrupt outfit without any ideological basis. Narayana gave a series of interviews to various newspapers on the eve of CPI State-level meet commencing in Karimnagar from February 21. His outbursts against the YSR Congress, displayed prominently in Eenadu and Andhra Jyothy, did not go too well with the party leaders.

Gattu Ramachandrarao, a former CPM man, took Narayana to task for his caustic remarks. Alleging that these interviews were scripted at NTR Trust Bhavan, the TDP headquarters, Gattu said that the CPI leader was playing to the tunes of Chandrababu Naidu.

He charged Narayana with misleading his own cadre over the party’s stand and said that Narayana’s interview was nowhere to be seen in Visalandhra, the party mouthpiece. Gattu alleged that Narayana’s stand was at variance with the thinking of the party rank and file.

The YSR Congress Party also made sarcastic remarks about Eenadu and Andhra Jyothy, saying that the interview against Jagan was published prominently on the front page in these papers, while reports on Narayana’s other activities are generally relegated to the inner pages.

Interestingly, while the CPI has come openly against YSR Congress Party, the CPM has not been as critical, keeping its options open on the issue.