Post date: May 14, 2011 5:40:7 AM
Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy's victory from Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency in Andhra Pradesh was never in doubt considering the firm grip of his family has had in the region for over two decades, but it is the record majority which has shocked his political rivals.
By retaining the seat with a majority of over 500,000, the young leader has justified his claim to be the real successor of his late father Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy's political legacy.
The victory of his mother Y.S. Vijayalaxmi from Pulivendula assembly seat, also with a record margin, is an indication of YSR's popularity even one-and-half year after his death.
While the YSR family won all the elections in Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency since 1989 and in Pulivendula since 1978, this is the first time that it contested the polls in his absence and on the ticket of a non-Congress party.
Jagan, as the late chief minister's son is popularly known, won the elections within three months after launching YSR Congress party.
Political observers say with this victory, YSR Congress party may emerge as the third key political force in the state, following the decision of Chiranjeevi's Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) to merge with the Congress.
All eyes will now be on the next move of YSR Congress chief, who had predicted during the campaign that Congress government in the state would fall in six months.
Jagan, who had termed the by-elections a fight between late YSR and Sonia Gandhi, proved his political mettle though the Congress used all the force at its command to defeat him and his mother.
Even the argument of the Congress that YSR was its leader and it continues to implement welfare schemes launched by him, failed to cut ice with the electorate.