Is Congress Still Shielding YSR Family?

Although the Congress high command is yet to take the final decision, a section of party leaders at the state level are intrigued with the proposal to field former MLA N Varadarajulu Reddy for the Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency and agriculture minister YS Vivenkananda Reddy for the Pulivendula assembly constituency in the bypolls on May 8. Chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and PCC president D Srinivas are expected to leave for Delhi soon to get the party's nod for these names.

Sources say, it's being projected that everybody in the party felt Vivekananda was the right candidate to take on the YSR's widow and this unanimity has forced Viveka to agree to the proposal. It's even publicized that the proposal to leave Pulivendula uncontested is being opposed by many including the family members. Viveka's wife Soubhagyamma was quoted as saying that she would throw her hat into the ring if her husband backed out. And this is where the cynics in the state Congress are piqued, as YSR family is known for its integrity and cohesiveness.

On the other hand, former MLA N Varadarajulu Reddy emerged as the front runner for the Kadapa Lok Sabha seat. Reddy, who represented Proddatur in the previous assembly, is being preferred to health minister D L Ravindra Reddy. The party is said to be reluctant in fielding the aggressive DL though he is considered in the area as a staunch opponent of YSR. The minister has been consistently raising the issue of wealth of the YSR family. Obviously, the YSR critics in the Congress see all these moves by the state congress leadership as going soft on YSR family.