ONGOLE: Following the unexpected election debacle, the YSRC has started chalking out plans to bring the cadre out of shock and to regain its lost ground.
YSRC president and former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has been conducting meetings with the party’s rank and file across the State and pouring in confidence through a series of consultations.
As part of stabilising YSRC’s cadre, YS Jagan has initiated party restructuring from the grassroots level to rebuild the strength to face the next elections efficiently. Several district in-charges, regional coordinators and office bearers have been changed and new leaders were appointed to boost the confidence of the YSRC activists. The party followed its ‘social justice’ theme in the recent appointments as well.
The party high command gave feelers about a mega statewide tour by YSRC chief YS Jagan in the next year. The bigwigs are busy scripting the best campaign programme for the same. It is reported that the YSRC chief is trying to settle differences between two or more factions in the party in various Assembly segments and explaining to them the need to stand together as one cadre to defeat strong political opponents.
The political exodus of several YSRC leaders, including ex-MLC Pothula Sunitha, former minister Balineni Srinivasa Reddy, Ongole Municipal Corporation Mayor, former MLAs Kilaru Rosaiah and Samineni Udaya Bhanu has caused disturbance among the YSRC cadre. Additionally, the rumours of a few others jumping the ship after Dasara is also making the YSRC cadre nervous.
“We strongly believe that the TDP-led NDA government has proved itself incompetent and inefficient in the first 100 days itself. The government’s diversion politics was evident through the recent ghee adulteration incident and Mumbai movie actress case, and we don’t believe all these baseless allegations,” said Umamaheswara Rao, a YSRC activist from SN Padu.
In response to the aspirations of its rank and file, YSRC high command has adopted a two-pronged strategy. One to fix the issues with those leaders who are allegedly mulling over joining NDA parties and two conducting a series of meetings with cadres of all districts by party chief Jagan to build up their confidence to face the political adversities and to emerge as strong leaders in the particular area.
To fuel their confidence, YS Jagan’s Tadepalli camp office has been modified into YSRC central office.
Srinivasa Rao, a staunch follower of the party from Ongole, told TNIE, “Our leader Jaganmohan Reddy already said that no big leader is going to leave the party and anyone who leaves the party is no big leader. If one leader leaves, the party will create 100 more leaders to replace them in the same constituency. Our strength and power is Jagan himself. Our party began with a single leader , YS Jagan, and gradually developed later. So, we are not afraid of the current situation. Losing and winning is quite common in elections. We live for Jagan, we fight for Jagan and even die for Jagan and YSRC.”
“In the last five years, it is true that our leader, we, and the government mainly focused on public welfare and proper implementation of our poll promises and failed to take care of our own party cadre. This is high time for us to look after the rank and file and we will do it sincerely,” asserted former minister and YSRC leader Perni Venkatramaiah (Nani).