YSR Congress party president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy continues to hit the headlines almost every day by rolling out one welfare scheme after another for the benefit of various sections of people, notwithstanding the criticism from the opposition parties and sharp dissection from the media.
While there is nothing much for the opposition to attack him on the welfare front, they are trying to trouble him by kicking up controversies like his religion and caste and raking up issues like introduction of English medium in government schools etc. And they have been making headlines in the media regularly.
On Monday, Jagan made it clear that he would continue to follow the welfare agenda irrespective of the controversies over his religion and caste.
“Humanity is my religion and commitment to welfare is my caste,” he declared at a programme in Guntur. His comments have made the lead story for the media on Tuesday.
Despite their agenda, the pro-Telugu Desam Party media like Eenadu and Andhra Jyothy had no option but to carry Jagan’s welfare scheme like YSR Arogya Aasara.
Eenadu carried his statement that there was nothing to point out against his government and that he would provide a flawless rule.
Andhra Jyothy made Jagan’s statement that humanity is his religion as the lead story. It also pointed out his comments that he had no magic wand in his hand to implement the welfare schemes, but had the support and blessings of the people.
Sakshi carried a big banner story on Jagan’s latest programme YSR Arogya Asara, quoting him as saying that he would come to the rescue of all sections with his welfare schemes, irrespective of mudslinging by the opposition parties.
The major story for the media on Tuesday was, of course, the nationwide outrage over the rape and murder of Disha, a veterinary doctor on the outskirts of Hyderabad on November 28.
While Eenadu and Andhra Jyothy carried flyer stories on the anguish expressed by the MPs in parliament and their demand for not dragging the case for years together, Sakshi confined it to a pointer headline on the front page due to lack of space, but carried a detailed report inside.
Strangely, Eenadu and Andhra Jyothy continued to give considerable space for actor and Jana Sena Party president Pawan Kalyan’s outburst against Jagan.
Eenadu is a little softer in this regard by confining to Pawan’s demand for giving importance to Telugu as a medium of instruction, but Andhra Jyothy sought to irritate the chief minister by quoting Pawan questioning whether Jagan had gone to jail only because he had studied in English medium.
Similarly, both the newspapers gave extensive coverage to TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu’s Kurnool tour in which he had criticised the Jagan government for cancelling every project that was taken up during the TDP regime and the police for allegedly foisting false cases against the TDP workers.
Apart from these political attacks on Jagan, Andhra Jyothy continued to carry “exclusive” reports to corner the government. It carried a lead story on a proposal of the government to start its own bank “Mee Bank” to route all the payments through this bank and operate it on the lines of PD accounts.
It also carried another negative story on alleged irregularities in door-delivery of subsidised rice by village volunteers in Srikakulam.
