The resignation of YSR Congress party general secretary and Rajya Sabha member V Vijayasai Reddy from the party and his post created ripples in the party, triggering a discussion on its repercussions.
As announced in his tweet, Sai Reddy met Rajya Sabha chairman and Vice-President of India Jagdeep Dhankar on Saturday morning and submitted his resignation.
He reiterated that he would keep away from politics and focus on horticulture and delivering guest lectures.
The party leaders, however, feel that Sai Reddy’s resignation would have serious impact on the party, particularly its equations with the Bharatiya Janata Party at the national level.
Though the BJP has been part of the TDP-led coalition, there has been an informal friendship between the YSRCP and BJP all these days, only because of Sai Reddy. That is why, his sudden decision to step down has shocked the party cadre.
The timing and manner of this resignation suggest potential involvement of the BJP, as Sai Reddy, despite being a YSRCP MP, is believed to have enjoyed a good rapport with key BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.
It was because of Sai Reddy’s lobbying power that the BJP had been protecting Jagan all these days – whether it was in the form of slow progress of CBI investigation into the alleged illegal assets case against him or the Vivekananda Reddy murder case involving his cousin Y S Avinash Reddy.
Vijaya Sai Reddy, though not known for strong grassroots support, played a pivotal role in managing YSRCP’s affairs in Delhi, acting as Jagan’s point person for several behind-the-scenes operations.
Party insiders recall how Sai Reddy had to make substantial sacrifices to secure his Rajya Sabha membership only to develop lot of clout in the national capital.
Now that Sai Reddy has quit the YSRCP and politics, it has virtually broken the BJP shield for Jagan, say sources.
The speculation is that BJP, which is looking for promoting Jana Sena Party chief Pawan Kalyan and wants to emerge as the key opposition to the TDP in the coming years, is no more interested in protecting Jagan and his party, which it was indirectly doing till now.
The BJP will be distancing itself from YSRCP. The party leaders, including Modi and Shah, are known to foster relationships based on necessity and move on once the purpose is served.
His sudden announcement of stepping away from politics altogether has fuelled fears among YSRCP leaders of a potential BJP role behind the scenes.
It is believed that Vijay Sai Reddy would not have made such a significant move without the BJP’s influence, and the unfolding political developments in the coming days may shed more light on the issue.
