Stepping into YSR shoes: Jagan builds own cadre during yatra

Independent Media

The Congress MP, Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, is busy building his own cadre by interacting with village and mandal-level Congress leaders and supporters during his Odarpu yatra in East Godavari.

Mr Jagan, who was supposed to wind up the tour by July 19 after visiting 70-odd bereaved families, has extended it up to July 26. He is working hard building his base and an associate boasted that the MP was working almost 22 hours a day. While most Congress ministers and MLAs are keeping away from the yatra some are, however, extending their support to Mr Jagan. Prominent among them was minister for social welfare, Mr Pilli Subash Chandra Bose, who defied the diktats of the Congress high command and joined the yatra.

Mr Bose, a staunch loyalist and supporter of YSR, joined the tour at Peddapuram on Friday and continued on Saturday. The local Congress MLA, Mr Routhu Surya Prakasa Rao, also joined the tour. “I will extend all my support to late CM Y. S. Rajasekhar Reddy’s family irrespective of any repercussions,” he said.

Many Congress MLAs including Mr K. Srinivasulu, Mr Amarnath Reddy, Mr Alla Nani, Ms Pamula Rajeswari Devi and MLCs Mr Kandula Durgesh and Mr G.V.V. Satyanarayana Raju also took part in the yatra.

The minister for rural water supply, Mr Pinepe Viswaroop, representing the Amalapuram Assembly segment in the district has, however, kept away from the tour and the local MP, Mr Vundavalli Arun Kumar, has also been conspicuous with his absence while Mr Jagan has been touring the villages under his Parliamentary segment.

All along the scheduled stops of Mr Reddy, Congress cadres at mandal and village level and activists of NSUI are erecting huge cut-outs of YSR. Flexi boards and banners are also carrying portraits of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Mr Jagan and those of the lower rung leader who sponsored it. The gist of most of Mr Jagan’s speeches is: “I am no longer alone. I have the support from all of you coming from the bottom of your hearts. Kindly forgive me for failing to spare more time for you as I have been entrusted with a great task.”

Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy seems to be trying to copy Y.S.R’s famous 1,470 km-long padayatra of 2003 which had got him power.