From the editor- in- chief
The government is a house which has been plundered and looted many times over by politicians of all shades. Every new tenant wants to punish the previous occupant, but rarely does a case reach its logical conclusion either because the incumbent’s tenancy expires or because the incumbent fears that the same will be done to them once they vacate the premises. A commonly used instrument is to file a Disproportionate Assets ( DA) case against an inconvenient rival. There is a galaxy of political stars who have DA cases against them. Former chief ministers Mulayam Singh Yadav, Mayawati, J. Jayalalithaa and Lalu Prasad Yadav are a few among them. The heat is turned on and off at the convenience of the ruling party. The most recent inconvenience is Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, son of the late Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy. He saw a rise in his assets from Rs 36 lakh in 2003- 04 to Rs 356 crore in 2011. A 1,000- times increase in wealth over such a short time span is most unusual. Jagan was arrested and remanded to judicial custody on May 27. The fact is that Jagan expanded his business empire during the reign of his father as chief minister of Andhra Pradesh between 2004 and 2009, until he was tragically killed in a helicopter accident. The fact also is that the Congress Government, in power at the Centre in all those years, did absolutely nothing to investigate him while his father was alive.
The late Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy was crucial to the Congress- led UPA’s two General Election wins in 2004 and 2009. In 2004, he delivered 29 Lok Sabha seats for the Congress from Andhra, around one- fifth of the total Congress tall of 145. In 2009, he delivered 33 seats to the Congress, one- sixth of its total tally of 206. He also wrested back control of Andhra Pradesh’s Assembly from Chandrababu Naidu in 2004 and won a second term in 2009. Whatever his financial dealings, or his son’s, he was too important for Sonia Gandhi and the Congress.
The discord between Jagan and the Congress began after his father’s death, when he laid claim to the chief ministership of Andhra Pradesh. In the Congress system of dynasty politics at the top, Jagan’s claim was not out of line with the party’s ethos. In its wisdom, the Congress high command rejected his claim and Jagan left the party to float a new outfit, the YSR Congress, in February 2011. Soon after, he won a thumping re- election from Kadapa by a margin of more than five lakh votes. In August, the CBI was unleashed on Jagan.
The political consequences for the Congress could be disastrous. For a man arrested on charges of corruption, Jagan was treated like a hero by his supporters. Instead of weakening him, the Congress has strengthened his hand in the 18 Assembly seat by- elections due in mid- June. If his party sweeps the by- elections — the public mood suggests it will— the Congress’s prospects in 2014 will be greatly diminished, in its one stronghold in the South.
Our cover story, written by Senior Editor Amarnath K. Menon and Associate Editor Bhavna Vij- Aurora, is an exhaustive account of how the Congress has messed up its fortunes in Andhra Pradesh by victimising Jagan. The story also contains an account of Jagan’s business interests, many of which are indeed controversial.
The Jagan episode again highlights the use, by the ruling party, of CBI, for targeting political opponents. It’s a pity because the CBI had gained some credibility in its vigorous pursuit of the 2G scam even if it was at the instance of the judiciary. The CBI’s suspiciously timed action against Jagan smacks of vendetta rather than due process. I believe the people of India have wisened up to such tactics and these will boomerang on the instigators.