Hyderabad: The Congress has another crisis of sorts to contend with in Andhra Pradesh, where it is in power. 26 of its MLAs garlanded a statue of party leader YSR Reddy before resigning from the state assembly.
While the Congress still holds a majority of the 294 seats in the assembly, the revolt will affect party morale and encourage the notion that YSR's son, Jagan Mohan deserves more support. Jagan Mohan quit the Congress late last year, and has launched his own party named after his father, the YSR Congress. At several public rallies, he has been accompanied by Congressmen who defied party orders to treat him as persona non-grata.
What has fuelled the en masse resignation is the fact that YSR, who died in 2009, has been in the formal complaint filed against Jagan Mohan by the CBI. The FIR refers to YSR as a criminal conspirator. The investigating agency is trying to prove that when YSR was Chief Minister, he used public offices to favour companies who thanked him by investing in Jagan's companies at massive premiums.
Jagan Mohan is one of India's wealthiest politicians. His empire includes a vernacular newspaper, a TV channel, a cement plant and a power project, and is estimated to be worth more than a few hundred crores. Earlier this year, he declared assets amounting to 365 crores.
"When he was ruling, the Prime Minister and Sonia Gandhi said he is a great leader. After his son left the party, why has he suddenly been made a criminal conspirator?" asked Srikant Reddy, one of the MLAs who has quit.
When YSR died in a helicopter crash, he was still Chief Minister. The months that followed witnessed several acts of rebellion by Jagan against the Congress, which chose not to appoint him his father's successor. He quit the party with his mother last year, and has formed the YSR Congress.
The complaint against him has been filed by a minister in the current government, P Shanker Rao.
Jagan Mohan has accused the Congress of using courts to "witch-hunt." He has also said that if the CBI wants to investigate his father's term in office in the context of this case, it must quiz the different ministers that belonged to YSR's Cabinet.
While the Congress still holds a majority of the 294 seats in the assembly, the revolt will affect party morale and encourage the notion that YSR's son, Jagan Mohan deserves more support. Jagan Mohan quit the Congress late last year, and has launched his own party named after his father, the YSR Congress. At several public rallies, he has been accompanied by Congressmen who defied party orders to treat him as persona non-grata.
What has fuelled the en masse resignation is the fact that YSR, who died in 2009, has been in the formal complaint filed against Jagan Mohan by the CBI. The FIR refers to YSR as a criminal conspirator. The investigating agency is trying to prove that when YSR was Chief Minister, he used public offices to favour companies who thanked him by investing in Jagan's companies at massive premiums.
Jagan Mohan is one of India's wealthiest politicians. His empire includes a vernacular newspaper, a TV channel, a cement plant and a power project, and is estimated to be worth more than a few hundred crores. Earlier this year, he declared assets amounting to 365 crores.
"When he was ruling, the Prime Minister and Sonia Gandhi said he is a great leader. After his son left the party, why has he suddenly been made a criminal conspirator?" asked Srikant Reddy, one of the MLAs who has quit.
When YSR died in a helicopter crash, he was still Chief Minister. The months that followed witnessed several acts of rebellion by Jagan against the Congress, which chose not to appoint him his father's successor. He quit the party with his mother last year, and has formed the YSR Congress.
The complaint against him has been filed by a minister in the current government, P Shanker Rao.
Jagan Mohan has accused the Congress of using courts to "witch-hunt." He has also said that if the CBI wants to investigate his father's term in office in the context of this case, it must quiz the different ministers that belonged to YSR's Cabinet.
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