New Delhi: Seeking to take the wind out of
defiant Y S Jaganmohan Reddy's sails, Congress today announced
Rs one lakh each to the families of those who committed
suicide in the wake of the death of then Andhra Pradesh Chief
Minister and his father Y S Rajasekhar Reddy.
The supporters of Reddy have welcomed the decision.
The announcement was made by AICC in charge of Andhra
Pradesh M Veerappa Moily here, a few days before Jagan planned
to take out a yatra from Prakasam district of the state in
defiance of the party high command.
"The Congress President has directed AICC to pay a sum of
Rs one lakh each to the bereaved families. The disbursement of
money will be done after the concerned Congress MPs and DCC
Presidents have congregation in their respective districts,"
he said.
Noting that AICC acknowledges the contribution of late
YSR to the party and his "great commitment" towards the people
of Andhra Pradesh, he said the Congress "pays tributes to the
departed soul on the eve of the commemoration of his first
death anniversary".
He said the Congress President had earlier instructed the
AICC to provide necessary relief to family members of those
persons who have committed suicide on the demise of YSR.
The announcement came even as a defiant Jagan is all set
to kick off the third phase of his controversial 'Odarpu'
yatra that could further shrink his support base among his
lawmaker colleagues who are now toeing the party line.
Jagan, who has completed two spells of the yatra in
several parts of the state despite party chief Sonia Gandhi
advising against it, will address a rally in the temple town
of Tirupati on September 2 on the occasion of the first death
anniversary of his father Rajasekhara Reddy.
The next day, he will resume the yatra to console the
relatives of those who either allegedly committed suicide or
died of shock after the hearing the news of the death of his
father in Prakasam district.
The party does not subscribe to Jagan's assertion that it
is a "personal" trip as it feels the tour has all the
political overtones.
But Jagan's camp denies that the party
has told the MPs and MLAs not to participate in the yatra and
maintains that it is a personal tour.
"We welcome the decision...We thank the party leadership
for this decision," Congress MLA D Chandrasekhar Reddy, a
close confidante of Jagan, said.
He, however, said the funds should be disbursed quickly
as some Congress leaders, who tried to defame Jagan, may try
to scuttle the idea.
Another Congress MLA, Konda Surekha, who resigned as
minister when Jagan was not made chief minister following YSR
death, said the Kadapa MP would go ahead with his 'Odarpu
yatra'.
Only last week, senior leader Pranab Mukherjee had warned
Jagan of disciplinary action if he goes ahead with the yatra.
A meeting of the Disciplinary Action Committee of the
party scheduled tonight was cancelled at the last minute and
Moily came out with the statement regarding the relief from
the AICC.
-PTI
First Published: Tuesday, August 31, 2010, 00:29