Post date: May 04, 2011 7:20:13 AM
Worried that Jaganmohan Reddy’s YSR Congress party is racing away to an emphatic victory, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy tried to raise the ‘power-hungry’ politics pursued by Jagan at a public meeting here at the municipal grounds on Tuesday evening.
While empty chairs and dreary faces greeted him, his efforts to lift the spirits of the sparse crowds to say ‘Jai bolo Congress, Jai bolo Sonia Gandhi’ also did not materialise as they hardly showed any interest.
Though the ground capacity was around 20,000, there were hardly 5,000 people. Most of them being ‘bought’ fair and square.
Apart from ferreting out his routine promises of implementing all the welfare schemes of late Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, Kiran tried to target Jagan’s craving to usurp power. But his tirade against Jagan didn’t evoke much response from the crowd, who were busy collecting their ‘share’ from the party campaign managers.
Kiran said that Jagan was blinded by his pursuit to grab power. “We are all indebted to Sonia Gandhi and Congress high command. We have been in politics for over 30 years and were rewarded now. Things won’t happen overnight. One needs to have patience to rise to the top,” he said, taking potshots at Jagan.
Pooh-poohing Jagan’s claims of decimating the Congress in the next elections, the CM said the Congress is a big tree.
“No small plant (read Jagan) could even dream of uprooting it. It’s strong and sturdy,” he asserted.
Trying to claim that YSR legacy was with them, he said there are hundreds of the late CM’s statues showing a raised hand.
“That indicates that the voters should vote for the hand symbol of Congress and not for switching on the ceiling fans and lights,” he said mocking at the Jagan’s party symbol.
“But little does CM realise that the people are reminded again and again of Jagan’s party symbol whenever he mentions the switch-hand co-ordination. He is in fact helping Jagan’s party cause,” a senior Congress leader from Nellore told media.