•Vinay Sitapati: Do you think your performance in the assembly and general elections will be affected because of your perceived link to Satyam?

Since the day the scam broke out, we have been fighting Satyam and the government has been shielding them. When the Chief Minister asked me in the Assembly, I told him very clearly that when I was associated with Satyam, I did not do Ramalinga Raju any favours. I promoted TCS, Wipro and Satyam. I brought all these companies to Hyderabad. But I never did anything out of the way.

•Vinay Sitapati: How do you see Chiranjeevi’s Praja Rajyam Party affecting the TDP’s chances in the elections?

Prajaya Rajyam is not a big threat. There are two strong parties in Andhra Pradesh—Telugu Desam and Congress. Ultimately, Chiranjeevi will help the Telugu Desam by splitting Congress votes. We only stand to gain.

•Suman K. Jha: This YSR-Naidu battle has become very personal, with the CM calling you names in the Assembly. Does that worry you?

I have been in politics for the last 30 years. I was in the Opposition from 1989 to ’94 and this is the second time that I am in the Opposition. Then I was just an MLA, now I am the Opposition leader. Thanks to the CM and the Speaker, I rarely got to speak in the Assembly. Whenever I spoke, they kept abusing me. I respected him as an Opposition leader during my tenure as CM. But today, the Chief Minister does not want any opposition, whether it is in the media, the Opposition or in the industry. It is a very bad period in the history of Andhra Pradesh. I have seen many CMs but he is the worst I have come across. He is looting the state, spending money, bribing and abusing. He has constituted 22 inquiries against me. Not a single has been proved.

... contd.