Jailed YSR Congress chief Jaganmohan Reddy's wife, Bharati Reddy, appears to be the typical homemaker, but is actually an MBA graduate, a businesswoman and activist in her own right. In an interview to Ganesh S Lakshman a day after the party swept bypolls in Andhra Pradesh, Bharati, 37, spoke of what the family has been going through for the last 10 months and her husband's political future.
What do you have to say about the charges levelled against your husband by the CBI?
The CBI has no case against Jagan. They have not been able to prove anything against him during the last 10 months and all they seem to want to do is to drag on the case. The only things they seem to have is that the share valuation of Sakshi newspaper rose from Rs 10 to Rs 350 apiece. There is nothing wrong in that — Eenadu had been similarly valued several years ago. Sakshi newspaper is a state-of-the-art newspaper and, in a short span, has become the 8th best newspaper in the country. Therefore, Sakshi commands a price because of its quality and professionalism.
The CBI has said that Jagan is not cooperating with the investigation and that he will influence witnesses if he is granted bail...
It has been more than 10 months since the CBI registered a case against Jagan. Show me one instance when he has tried to influence the witnesses during the time he was walking free. Regarding his non-cooperation with the investigation, the CBI is lying— unless it defines non-cooperation as not admitting to irregularities and offences that Jagan did not commit. In fact, when the CBI levelled this charge in court last week, Jagan urged the judge to play the videotapes and see for himself whether he had cooperated with the investigators or not.
What will you and YSR Congress do if Jagan does not get bail?
After the resounding victory in the bypolls, our first and immediate task is to ensure that Jagan comes out on bail. He should come out soon as there is no case against him. But if he does not, we will go to the people. Vijayamma (honorary party president) is going to New Delhi next week to meet top leaders including PM Manmohan Singh and press for Jagan's case. We will also demand that the probe be transferred to a sitting judge of the Supreme Court for speedy redressal. Remember, the people have spoken. We have been say- ing that the case against Jagan and his arrest is nothing but a political witch-hunt at the behest of the Congress. And by voting emphatically for Jagan, the people too have said so.
Is Jagan chief minister material?
Like his father YSR, Jagan is a focused person and does not rest till he achieves what he set out to do. That is how he spent months in nurturing and monitoring the growth of Sakshi newspaper. YSR stood by a lot of people and his son is the same. Jagan is empathetic and compassionate; he will never tell anyone who comes to him for help that it cannot be done. God willing, Jagan will become the chief minister of the state in 2014. And he will turn out to be one of the best chief ministers that India has produced.
What are the immediate political objectives of YSR Congress?
There are about 20 MLAs with us, and many more are in talks. But Jagan will not go for a no-confidence motion just to achieve his personal agenda. And he is not a vindictive person. It is really sad to see so many of the Congress leaders who owe their political growth to YSR level such baseless and ridiculous charges against him and Jagan. Chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy has said that Jagan lives in a 70-bedroom house and TDP president Chandrababu Naidu has claimed that we have already paid Rs 70 crore as our legal bill. All this is not true. Lotus Pond, our residence, is not a hotel. For the record, it has four bedrooms.
Was there no option for Jagan but to quit the Congress?
Jagan never aspired for the chief minister's post after YSR's death. In fact, the whole family was in a state of shock and mourning for at least 20 days after that and much later we came to know that some supporters had launched a signature campaign. After YSR's death, Jagan got to know that at least 600 to 700 persons had either died of shock or committed suicide. As YSR's son, Jagan felt it was his duty to meet the families of these people and console them. But Sonia (Gandhi) never gave permission for reasons best known to her. After waiting for over six months, Jagan decided he had no choice but to go ahead with his Odarpu (consoling) Yatra. And parting ways with the Congress was expected after that.
What do you have to say about the charges levelled against your husband by the CBI?
The CBI has no case against Jagan. They have not been able to prove anything against him during the last 10 months and all they seem to want to do is to drag on the case. The only things they seem to have is that the share valuation of Sakshi newspaper rose from Rs 10 to Rs 350 apiece. There is nothing wrong in that — Eenadu had been similarly valued several years ago. Sakshi newspaper is a state-of-the-art newspaper and, in a short span, has become the 8th best newspaper in the country. Therefore, Sakshi commands a price because of its quality and professionalism.
The CBI has said that Jagan is not cooperating with the investigation and that he will influence witnesses if he is granted bail...
It has been more than 10 months since the CBI registered a case against Jagan. Show me one instance when he has tried to influence the witnesses during the time he was walking free. Regarding his non-cooperation with the investigation, the CBI is lying— unless it defines non-cooperation as not admitting to irregularities and offences that Jagan did not commit. In fact, when the CBI levelled this charge in court last week, Jagan urged the judge to play the videotapes and see for himself whether he had cooperated with the investigators or not.
What will you and YSR Congress do if Jagan does not get bail?
After the resounding victory in the bypolls, our first and immediate task is to ensure that Jagan comes out on bail. He should come out soon as there is no case against him. But if he does not, we will go to the people. Vijayamma (honorary party president) is going to New Delhi next week to meet top leaders including PM Manmohan Singh and press for Jagan's case. We will also demand that the probe be transferred to a sitting judge of the Supreme Court for speedy redressal. Remember, the people have spoken. We have been say- ing that the case against Jagan and his arrest is nothing but a political witch-hunt at the behest of the Congress. And by voting emphatically for Jagan, the people too have said so.
Is Jagan chief minister material?
Like his father YSR, Jagan is a focused person and does not rest till he achieves what he set out to do. That is how he spent months in nurturing and monitoring the growth of Sakshi newspaper. YSR stood by a lot of people and his son is the same. Jagan is empathetic and compassionate; he will never tell anyone who comes to him for help that it cannot be done. God willing, Jagan will become the chief minister of the state in 2014. And he will turn out to be one of the best chief ministers that India has produced.
What are the immediate political objectives of YSR Congress?
There are about 20 MLAs with us, and many more are in talks. But Jagan will not go for a no-confidence motion just to achieve his personal agenda. And he is not a vindictive person. It is really sad to see so many of the Congress leaders who owe their political growth to YSR level such baseless and ridiculous charges against him and Jagan. Chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy has said that Jagan lives in a 70-bedroom house and TDP president Chandrababu Naidu has claimed that we have already paid Rs 70 crore as our legal bill. All this is not true. Lotus Pond, our residence, is not a hotel. For the record, it has four bedrooms.
Was there no option for Jagan but to quit the Congress?
Jagan never aspired for the chief minister's post after YSR's death. In fact, the whole family was in a state of shock and mourning for at least 20 days after that and much later we came to know that some supporters had launched a signature campaign. After YSR's death, Jagan got to know that at least 600 to 700 persons had either died of shock or committed suicide. As YSR's son, Jagan felt it was his duty to meet the families of these people and console them. But Sonia (Gandhi) never gave permission for reasons best known to her. After waiting for over six months, Jagan decided he had no choice but to go ahead with his Odarpu (consoling) Yatra. And parting ways with the Congress was expected after that.
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