Andhra Pradesh: YSR sibling rivalry heats up ahead of poll season

Rivalry within the YSR family in Andhra Pradesh grew as chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy and YS Sharmila launched fresh attacks against each other

The rift within the family of former chief minister of combined Andhra Pradesh late YS Rajasekhar Reddy has reached a feverish pitch, with both brother – YSR Congress party president and present chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and his sister and state Congress president YS Sharmila indulging in a war of words.

Andhra Pradesh Congress president YS Sharmila during a public rally on Friday. (X)

On Friday, addressing the party workers at the Pradesh Congress Committee headquarters in Vijayawada, Sharmila claimed that she was the true successor of her late father. “I am a tigress born to a tiger. I have YSR’s blood in my veins. Whether anyone agrees or not, I am YS Sharmila Reddy,” she said.

She said she had never sought any help or financial assistance from Jagan. “So far, I have not gotten any favours from Jagan. My mother Vijayalakshmi can vouch for my sincerity,” Sharmila said.

On Thursday, too, Sharmila had made strong comments against Jagan. She was reacting to the comments made by the chief minister at a media conclave in Tirupati the previous day accusing the Congress high command of engineering a split in the family by provoking his sister against him.

“The Congress has been playing dirty politics right from the beginning. It is known for divide-and-rule politics. It had divided the united Andhra Pradesh for its petty political gains. Now, it is doing the same with my family,” Jagan said.

He pointed out that in the past, the Congress had divided the YSR family by luring his uncle late YS Vivekananda Reddy and making him contest elections against his mother Vijayamma. “Now the Congress is pitching my sister against me. The god is there to teach such elements a fitting lesson,” he said.

In response, Sharmila said it was Jagan who was responsible for the split in the family, not the Congress. “If the family of YSR has been split like this, it is Jagan who is responsible for it. Jagan has ruined the state and his family with his own hands. It is the god who is a witness to it. My mother is a witness to it. My entire family is a witness to it,” she said.

Sharmila recalled that when Jagan Mohan Reddy’s party was in crisis in its early days of inception, as many as 18 MLAs had quit the Congress and stood by him. He promised that he would make all of them ministers once he becomes the CM. “How many of them have become ministers in his regime?” she said.

She said when the MLAs had quit their posts, she and Vijayamma had toured their constituencies and campaigned for them. “We struggled for their victory. When the YSRCP was in trouble, I took up the padayatra. I left my family and children at home and went round the state in adverse weather conditions. I even toured the state for united Andhra,” she recalled.

“Whenever Jagan wanted my services, I stood by him selflessly, without questioning, without expecting anything. Even in the last elections, I took part in the party campaign,” she said.

She alleged that after Jagan became the CM, he had completely changed as a person. “Though he did a lot of injustice to me, I did not say anything but expected that he would do good for the state. However, it has not happened,” she said and alleged that Jagan cannot claim to be a true successor of YSR, as he has not implemented any of his welfare schemes in the state.

Sharmila has been making remarks against her brother ever since she took over as the APCC chief on January 21. She alleged that the Jagan government had pushed the state into bankruptcy, despite taking massive debts that crossed ₹10 lakh crore in the last five years.

“Forget the construction of three capitals, there is no money even for taking up road repairs. The state government employees have not been getting salaries on time. On the other hand, the atrocities on the Dalits have been on the rise. The state has gone into the hands of the mining and sand mafia,” she said.

She said Jagan, who raised a hue and cry over the special category status to AP, has not bothered to take up any movement against the Centre for denying the same. Sharmila said even after 10 years of the state bifurcation, Andhra Pradesh doesn’t have a capital city. While Naidu failed to complete Amaravati, Jagan ignored it but could not take up the construction of three capitals. “Both the governments have failed to complete the Polavaram project even after 10 years,” she said.

Within hours of Sharmila launching a tirade against him, Jagan launched a counter-attack against her. Addressing a rally at Uravakonda in Anantapur district, he said some star campaigners from the neighbouring state were coming to Andhra Pradesh to help Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N Chandrababu Naidu.

“There is a group of star campaigners, belonging to other parties, which is trying to prop up Naidu. They stay in the neighbouring state and come to AP to campaign for the TDP. Now, one more person who took over the reins of the Congress party that had divided united Andhra Pradesh illogically and had done injustice to the state, has joined this bandwagon to benefit Chandrababu Naidu,” Jagan said.