Prez poll: Jagan backs NDA

YSRCP move spurs political debate

​New Delhi: YSRCP chief Y S Jaganmohan Reddy on Wednesday pledged support to the NDA candidate in the upcoming Presidential elections.

Not content with it, he went ahead and reiterated that his party always supported the BJP on every issue except over the denial of the Special Category Status to AP and would continue to support it.

Jagan, who was here to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to apprise him of the plight of chilli farmers and AgriGold investors, used the occasion for political play too.

The BJP is facing a shortfall despite its recent successes in the Assembly elections and is looking at neutral parties and non-allies too for support. Coming at this juncture, the support of YSRCP is a relief to the ruling party.

The Congress is trying to consolidate the Opposition vote against the NDA candidate with Sonia Gandhi herself initiating the move. "There is no way I could support the Congress which had sent me to jail and sullied my father's image.

I urged the Prime Minister to sanction Special Category Status to AP. NDA candidate is bound to win. It would be better if there is no contest instead. I don't know what Sonia is thinking about in this regard. But, here should be no contest for the post of the President.

I assured the PM of our full support," he briefed media later. On his support to BJP, he said: "When did we ever oppose the BJP. On every issue we supported the BJP. We only differ with it on the issue of Special Category Status which it is refusing to give.

Every bill that was in favour of the people was supported by us in the past. What is new in that? The only difference is over SCS. We never adopted dubious standards like Chandrababu Naidu. PM is the only person who could sanction SCS to us and hence we support him".

This potential move could generate much discussion in AP, particularly in the ruling TDP. The BJP has been redrawing its southern strategy, including the one for the Telugu States often asserting that there could be no permanent friends and foes in politics.

While the TDP and the BJP are allies at both the State and Centre, the YSRCP is facing a crisis with its leader Jaganmohan Reddy and its MP Vijayasai Reddy facing criminal charges in CBI cases in quid pro cases.

These cases could come to a logical end within the next two years. In case Jagan faces conviction not only his political career but also that of the party faces a possible bleak future.

Wednesday’s move is being read as a desperate one by the political analysts as Jagan could be unsure of the outcome of the cases. The political moves of BJP against its opponents must also have led to alarm bells ringing in the party as no opponent is being spared by the BJP of late.

The BJP's aggressive policy in tackling opponents could have forced Jagan to go for a rethink, it is being speculated.

However, this is also TDP's 'political manthan' time as if YSRCP emerges as a political ally of the BJP in AP, its future also would become questionable as it is riding heavy on the success of Modi.

The party sources described the development as “we can now have the cake and eat it too". As for the BJP "all is well that ends well”.