Now that YSR Congress party president and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy faced a humiliating defeat in the recent assembly elections, his sister and Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Y S Sharmila is desperately trying to prove herself the real political heir of her father late Y S Rajasekhar Reddy.
Sharmila is making all arrangements to organise the 75th birth anniversary of YSR at CK Convention Centre in Vijayawada on July 8. The event is being organised on behalf of the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee.
Sharmila personally invited all the top Congress national leaders including Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, general secretary K C Venugopal etc.
She also extended invitation to senior Congress leaders from Telangana and Karnataka also including Karnataka chief minister Siddharamaiah and deputy chief minister D K Shivakumar, besides Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy and deputy chief minister Bhatti Vikramarka.
She said that she had also invited leaders of other political parties who have close connections with Rajasekhar Reddy.
She urged the supporters and fans of Dr Rajasekhar Reddy to participate in the birth anniversary programme in large numbers and pay homage.
According to sources, Sharmila has extended special invitation to her mother and YSR’s wife Y S Vijayalakshmi.
It is not immediately known whether Vijayalakshmi has agreed to attend the programme or not, but sources said she cannot ignore such a grand event to commemorate her husband.
In fact, Vijayamma and Sharmila organised YSR’s 12th death anniversary in 2021 in Hyderabad and invited more than 300 guests, including erstwhile colleagues of YSR like K V P Ramachandra Rao, Vundavalli Arun Kumar and Lagadapati Rajagopal.
“So, she may not like to skip the meeting organised by her daughter in Vijayawada,” sources said.
But if Vijayamma attends the meeting, she may have to share the dais with top Congress leaders like Sonia Gandhi (if at all she attends) and her children, whom she doesn’t like. It remains to be seen whether she attends the meeting.
At the same time, Sharmila has not invited her brother Jagan Mohan Reddy to the meeting. First, both the siblings are not in talking terms; secondly, the meeting is being organised on behalf of the Congress party and Jagan won’t like to be party to it.
In any case, Jagan will be going to Idupulapaya to pay homage to his father at YSR Samadhi. If Vijayalakshmi doesn’t want to attend Sharmila meeting, she may also join her son to conduct prayers at Idupulapaya.
But all said and done, 75th birth anniversary of YSR is a big opportunity for Vijayamma to join the event and pay tributes to her husband!
