The Special Category Status for Andhra Pradesh had become a big emotive issue before the assembly elections.
The YSR Congress party MPs had quit their Lok Sabha seats in protest against the Centre’s adamant attitude in denying the special category status, while the Telugu Desam Party took a U-turn on its earlier stand and pulled out of the NDA to launch a tirade against the BJP and Narendra Modi.
But, surprisingly the issue did not figure much during the campaign of any political party – whether it was YSR Congress party or Telugu Desam Party.
The manifestos of both the parties conveniently ignored the demand for special category status, though the leaders talked about it occasionally.
Now that YSR Congress party president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy is coming to power in Andhra Pradesh, one would expect that he would fight with the Centre on the special category status.
But Jagan has realised that it is going to a futile exercise, the BJP got huge mandate from the people with over 300 MP seats, besides another 50 plus seats for the NDA partners.
He indicated to the media in New Delhi that there won’t be any benefit in fighting with the Centre on the issue.
“Had the BJP got 250 seats, we would have put forth the demand for SCS as a condition to support the Modi government. But it did not happen. So, there is no point in fighting with the Centre on this issue,” he said.
Jagan, however, sought to appease the people that he would continue to raise the SCS issue till 2024 elections, whenever he goes to Delhi seeking support.
“This is the first meeting with the PM and he will meet him around 30 to 50 times over 5 years tenure. Whenever I meet him, I will remind him about special category status,” Jagan said.
It clearly indicated that demand for SCS will not be in Jagan’s priority list. By the time the next elections are held, SCS will become a dead demand!
