Congress to attack Jagans criminal links

                                                                                                      
HYDERABAD: A majority of the campaign managers of the Congress seem to be veering round to the view that the party should attack the “criminal nature of YSR Congress Party chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’’ more than his corruption if it is to reap a good harvest of votes in the byelections on June 12.

In the absence of any clear instructions on which aspect of Jagan Mohan Reddy’s public life should be attacked, each leader is talking in terms he thinks fit to diminish the popularity of the Kadapa MP.

Ever since Jagan Mohan Reddy had left the Congress in 2010 and floated his own outfit ahead of the byelections in Kadapa in May 2011,Congress leaders had been maintaining stoic silence on YSR’s scion.

This led to thinking that many of them were not ready to burn their oars by targeting Jagan Mohan Reddy and lose an opportunity to be on his side if he emerged as an alternative to the Congress. Only the likes of Rajya Sabha member V Hanumantha Rao were harsh on him. When Jagan Mohan Reddy’s “connection” with Mangali Krishna, an accused in the case of attempt on the life of TDP leader Paritala Ravindra in 2001, became known, Hanumantha Rao was the fisrt to pounce on Jagan  saying that if such leaders were elected, there would only be more bloodshed and gore.

The latest thinking in the Congress is that this line of attack on Jagan Mohan Reddy might yield result because people would not like to support a leader who has a criminal background. “People have reconciled to the fact that leaders of all political parties are corrupt. If you can establish the “criminal” past of Jagan Mohan Reddy, it might jell with people,” one senior leader from Kadapa said.

According to him, there has not been unanimity on what should be said about Jagan Mohan Reddy, Some leaders attack Jagan Mohan Reddy and his father, some attack only Jagan and keep silent on YSR and some attack the Kadapa MP but express their high regard for his father. “This is leading to a situation where we are at a loss to assess how people are receiving us,” he said.

He is of the view that if one harps on Jagan’s corruption, it may be counterproductive since it will bring the late YSR into the picture. ``When you attack Jagan, by implication you are saying that YSR too was corrupt. People are not ready yet to relish if one talks ill of YSR. It is better to go slow on corruption and concentrate on exposing the “criminal nature” of Jagan Mohan Reddy,’’ he said.
from Ibn Live

Jagan in Bellary, meets Suresh Babu

                                                                
BELLARY: YSR Congress president and son of former Andhra Pradesh chief minister late Y S Rajashekara Reddy, Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy was in Bellary on Tuesday campaigning for his party candidate to Rayadurgam constituency of Anantpur district.

Along with his supporters and Ramachandra Reddy, said to be the YSRC candidate for Rayadurgam constituency, Jagan Reddy visited many villages in the district appealing to people for their support in the upcoming by-election.

Jagan Reddy arrived in Bellary late on Monday and stayed at Ramachandra Reddy’s residence on Siruguppa Road in Bellary.

According to sources, Kampli MLA Suresh Babu met Jagan Reddy on Monday night. The two were said to have had long discussions over campaigns in the coming days, added sources.

Former minister and Bellary Rural MLA Sriramulu who is on a 921-km-long padayatra (rally) had met the regional leaders on his visit to Rayadurgam.

Boyas are the dominant community in Rayadurgam and their vote is crucial.

As Sriramulu belongs to the same community, Jagan Reddy is said to be garnering the support of the Sriramulu camp for his candidate of Rayadurgam constituency.

The by-poll will be held on June 12 , the nomination process for which will get start on May 12.

from Ibn live

Janardhan Reddy's aide campaigning for YSR Congress party in Andhra by-election

                                                                               
Despite repeated denials by YSR Congress party president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy about his business and political links with mining baron and former Karnataka minister Gali Janardhan Reddy, the ongoing campaign by the Kadapa MP for the June 12 by-elections in the state has proved that there is indeed a nexus between the two.
For the last few days, Janardhan Reddy's close aide and Bellary (rural) MLA B Sriramulu has been actively campaigning in Rayadurg assembly constituency in Anantapur district, where YSR Congress party candidate Kapu Ramachandra Reddy is contesting.
Interestingly, Ramachandra Reddy is also a director on the board of Obulapuram Mining Company owned by the Bellary mine lord which has since suspended the mining operations following the CBI inquiry into the illegal mining scandal.
Sriramulu, who had resigned from the Bharatiya Janata Party and won the Bellary (rural) seat again as an independent, floated his own political outfit BSR Party which stands for: Badavara (of the poor), Shramikara (of the working class) and Raitara (of farmers) five months ago.
It may be a coincidence that his party's name closely resembles YSR Congress, in which Y stands for Yuvajana, S for Shramika and R for Rythu. And another strange coincidence is that Sriramulu had chosen "ceiling fan" as an election symbol for his party and it happens to be the election symbol of Jagan party as well.
Rayadurg, being on the borders of Bellary, has a large number of voters from Boya community to which Sriramulu belongs. Apart from Sriramulu, his family members and a large number of BSR Party leaders and cadres are campaigning for the victory of YSR Congress party in Rayadurg. While the Congress party has chosen former MLA Patil Venugopal Reddy as its candidate, the TDP has fielded Dileep Reddy as its candidate.
During his electioneering, Sriramulu said the Congress party had meted out grave injustice to Jaganmohan Reddy after the death of his father Y S Rajasekhara Reddy. "Only Jagan can bring back the golden rule of his father to the state," Sriramulu said.
Sources in the Congress party said Gali Janardhan Reddy and his brothers were also financing the candidates of YSR Congress in Kadapa and Anantapur districts.
"Everybody in the party knows that it was Janardhan Reddy who got the Congress party ticket to Kapu Ramachandra Reddy in Rayadurg because of his proximity with YSR," a senior Congress leader from Rayalaseema said.
It is an open secret that the Bellary brothers had been close associates of YSR family for several years. Janardhan Reddy originally hails from Chittoor district and is later settled in Bellary taking up iron ore business has become a business associate of Jaganmohan in the last five years.
It was during the YSR regime that the Bellary brothers had got mining leases in hundreds of acres in Anantapur, bordering Bellary. The YSR government had also granted licence to Janardhan Reddy to set up Brahmani Steels Limited at Jammalamadugu in Kadapa district and allocated 10,675 acres of land for the steel plant at a nominal rate of Rs.18,500 per acre and magnanimously allotted another 4,000 acres to construct an international standard airport near the steel plant.
The CBI has suspected that the money made through illegal mining in the OMC had been routed into Jagan's business empire through other companies.
 from India Today

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/reddy-aide-campaigning-for-jagans-party-in-andhra-by-poll/1/187759.html

TDP, Congress colluded: Jagan

                                                                                 
YSR Congress president and Kadapa MP Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy came down heavily on the Congress and the Telugu Desam, stating that the ruling and opposition parties had colluded in state politics.
Mr Jagan addressed various road shows as part of the byelection campaign in Anantapur town on Monday.
Speaking on the occasion, he said that government and the opposition had colluded and were foisting cases against Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy. Mr Jagan alleged that Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy had allocated five areas worth crores of rupees in Ameerpet, Hyderabad to TD president N. Chandrababu Naidu as a goodwill gesture.
The YSR Congress chief also criticised the CBI, stating that the premier investigative agency was adopting double standards. He said that the CBI had found fault with land given on 25 year lease to a company for setting up factories in Mahbubnagar district when Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy was chief minister and had started investigating into the land dealing. However, it had not taken up investigation into Chandrababu Naidu allocating 535 acres of prime land in Hyderabad for construction of luxury villages at a cost of Rs 29 lakh per acre when the market value was a whopping Rs 4 crore per acre, said Mr Jagan.
“Funds are not released for operations for the poor. Welfare programme are completely neglected,” he said, stating that the byelections will herald a new beginning in state politics. YSR Congress Anantapur candidate B. Gurunath Reddy was also present.
From DC

Jagan slams Naidu, CBI

                                                                    
ANANTAPUR: YSR Congress president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy targeted the TD and CBI on the second day of his electioneering in Anantapur urban constituency on Monday.

Addressing a series of roadshows in the town after offering prayers at a dargah in Chandrababu Naidu Colony and a church in Aravind Nagar, he accused TD supremo N Chandrababu Naidu of misusing power to grab lands. He charged the TD chief with giving away valuable lands in Hyderabad to his kin during his nine-year regime.

He said the CBI is finding fault with late chief minister YS Rajasekahra Reddy for allotting lands for development of industries in backward districts of Mahbubnagar and Medak districts, while conveniently leaving Chandrababu Naidu, who gave away lands for luxury resorts and golf clubs.

Jagan maintained that the Opposition party was more interested in tarnishing the image of Rajasekhara Reddy than in solving the problems of the poor and farmers.

He blamed the ‘direction-less policies’ of the state government for the suicides by farmers in the state. He wondered why no one was questioning the banks for charging more interest from women on the loans taken under the Pavala Vaddi scheme.

Stating that the 17 MLAs have resigned their posts to teach a lesson to the government which is least bothered about people’s welfare and called upon the people to re-elect them with a massive mandate. He said everyone is aware how the party nominee Gurunath Reddy strove for the welfare of Anantapur people.

Meanwhile, large number of Congress leaders� joined the YSR Congress. Notable among those include former Anantapur municipal chairman A Narayana Reddy, his son A Adinarayana Reddy. 

from Ibn Live