If the reports coming from the YSR Congress party are to be believed, decks have been cleared for the defection of former minister and Telugu Desam Party MLA from Visakhapatnam (north) Ganta Srinivasa Rao into the YSR Congress party shortly.
According to highly placed sources, YSRC president and chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy has given the green signal for Ganta’s entry into the party.
Apparently, Jagan has felt that Ganta would definitely add to the strength of the YSRC in Visakhapatnam, as the latter, despite allegations of corruptions against him, had his own cadre strength and image in the district.
If he does not get a chance to join the YSRC, he would jump into the BJP any way and that would be a further nuisance for the YSRC. Hence, it is better to take him into YSRC and tighten the screws around him, Jagan felt.
But there is a problem. Though Ganta had been serious trying to defect into the YSR Congress party for quite some, he could not succeed in his attempts because state tourism minister and Bhimili MLA Muthamsetti Srinivasa Rao alias Avanti Srinivas who has been stalling his attempts.
This led to war of words between Ganta and Avanti some time back. In order to avoid this confrontation, Jagan has a plan.
Sources said Jagan told Ganta that he would have to resign from his assembly membership as a matter of policy of the YSRC. And in the next April, Ganta would be nominated to Rajya Sabha.
If Ganta goes to Delhi, it will avoid local troubles for Avanti. At the same time, Rajya Sabha membership will help Ganta to safeguard his political and business interests!
