Jaganmohan Reddy Arrested in Assets Case, Andhra on Alert

Hyderabad, May 27 (IANS): The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Sunday arrested YSR Congress party leader Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy for illegally amassing wealth, a day before he was scheduled to appear before the CBI court here.

YSR party leader J. Prabhakar Rao told reporters outside Dilkusha Guest House, the CBI camp office, that the CBI had arrested Jagan, as the young leader is popularly known.

Jagan remained inside the guest house since his arrest at 7.20 p.m while his mother Y.S. Vijayamma, wife Bharathi and other family members sat on a protest outside demanding the CBI to give them the reason for the arrest.

Tension prevailed outside the guest house as the family members refused to leave and accused Congress chief Sonia Gandhi for getting him arrested to satisfy her ego.

Though the CBI did not issue any official statement about Jagan's arrest, it informed his leaders and family members that it has taken him into custody.

According to sources, Jagan has been arrested on charges of cheating, criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and falsification of accounts. The CBI believes he conspired with his father and then chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy to dole out favours to some companies in return for investments in his businesses.

The 40-year-old, one the richest MPs in the country with declared assets of Rs.356 crore last year, will be produced in the CBI court Monday.

Jagan was arrested after three days of questioning by the CBI about investments flowing into his companies after his father became the chief minister.

YSR, as Rajasekhara Reddy was popularly known, died in a helicopter crash on Sep 2, 2009, soon into his second term.

Jagan and 71 others were booked by CBI in August last year after Andhra Pradesh High Court ordered a CBI probe, acting on petitions filed by Congress leader P. Shankar Rao and some Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leaders.

Jagan, who the accused number one, is the fifth one to be arrested in the case. The CBI Thursday arrested Excise Minister Mopidevi Venkataramna for his role in issuing government orders alloting lands to Vanpic company for a port project.

Industrialist Nimmagadda Prasad, one of the promoters of Vanpic, and bureaucrat K.V. Brahmananda Reddy are already in judicial custody. Their 10-day CBI custody ended Sunday.

Jagan's auditor Vijay Sai Reddy was the first accused to be arrested last year. He was recently released on bail.

Meanwhile, anticipating violent protests by Jagan's supporters, police went on high alert across the state.

Security was stepped up at the guest house, Jagan's residence, party offices of Congress and TDP and at other important places here.

Security was also tightened in the districts. Policemen were out on streets while leaders and activists of the YSR party were also arrested at some places. The state-owned road transport corporation stopped plying its buses in some districts as a precautionary measure.

YSR Congress has called for a shutdown across the state Monday to protest its leader's arrest. The party leaders appealed to people to observe the shutdown peacefully.

Jagan's mother, wife, sister Sharmila, brother-in-law Anil Kumar and other family members rushed to the guest house and met him soon after the CBI informed them about the arrest.

After coming out of the guest house, Vijayamma hit out at the Congress chief blaming her for the arrest.

She told reporters that Gandhi was targeting Jagan for going ahead with his "Odarpu Yatra" following YSR's death.

"What crime has my son committed? What do they want to do with my son," she asked in a voice choked with emotion.

"Is this the reward to my late husband for giving 35 Lok Sabha seats and bringing Congress party to power at the centre," asked Vijayamma, who is the honorary president of YSR Congress Party, floated by Jagan last year following their resignation from Congress.

YSR's widow also voiced her doubts over the cause of helicopter crash that killed her husband.

Vijayamma, who is a member of state assembly, said people would decide the future of Jagan.

She alleged that the CBI arrested Jagan without any evidence and despite the fact that he was cooperating.

Bharathi said the arrest was carried out to satisfy Gandhi. "He has been arrested out of grudge. It is just because they (Congress) are going to lose the by-elections. This is sheer injustice," she said.

The ruling Congress, opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the left parties welcomed Jagan's arrest.

"Such corrupt people should not be among people but they should be in jail," said TDP chief and former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.

Jagan's mother, wife arrested

Police Sunday night arrested YSR Congress Party leader Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy's mother, wife and other family members for staging a sit-in to protest his arrest.

Policewomen forcibly lifted Jagan's mother Vijayamma, wife Bharathi, sister Sharmila, and other family members into the waiting police vehicles after they sat on a "dharna" on the road in front of Dilkusha Guest House, the camp office of CBI. They were later dropped at their residence.

Police also arrested Jagan's brother-in-law Anil Kumar, Congress MP Sabbam Hari, who is loyal to Jagan, YSR party leaders J. Prabhakar Rao, Y.V. Subba Reddy and others.

Police said they were all arrested for violating prohibitory orders, which are in force in the city. The orders ban assembly of five or more people.

Vijayamma, widow of late Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy and family members staged sit-in for over two hours demanding the CBI officials come out and give them the reason for Jagan's arrest.

They earlier called on Jagan in the guest house. Vijayamma blamed Congress president Sonia Gandhi for her son's arrest.

Jagan's meteoric rise in wealth and popularity

By Mohammed Shafeeq (IANS)

Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy, who was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in a disproportionate assets case Sunday, has seen many controversies but has emerged as a force to reckon with in Andhra Pradesh politics in a short span of time.

One of the richest Indian politicians with declared assets of Rs.356 crore, the young leader has been in news, most of the times for wrong reasons, since his father and state chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy died in a helicopter crash in September 2009.

First projected as the next chief minister and then dumped by his late father's loyalists on the direction of Congress leadership, the businessman-politician was isolated, leading to his exit from the party but has since proved his ability as a crowd-puller.

The legacy of his popular father, a sustained campaign to reach out to masses, an aggressive nature, the youth factor and also the money power helped Jagan, as he is popularly known, to remain afloat even in adversity.

The 40-year-old, seen by many as the most popular leader in state politics, is giving sleepless nights to both the Congress and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and has emerged as the third major political force since launching YSR Congress Party last year.

YSR Congress party even sees his arrest as a blessing in disguise as it hopes to cash in on the public sympathy in June 12 by-elections to one Lok Sabha and 18 assembly seats.

By leaving the Congress party, which his father brought back to power in the state in 2004, and by single-handedly taking on both it and the TDP, Jagan has proved that he is here to play a long innings in state politics.

Jagan, who has been accusing Congress, TDP and CBI of "match-fixing" to implicate him, even used his appearance before CBI as a platform to attack his political rivals.

With a record-shattering win in Kadapa by-elections last year, Jagan has already proved that he is a force to reckon with. Without charisma of his father and the Congress party, he retained Kadapa Lok Sabha seat with a record majority of over five lakh votes.

It was his "Odarpu yatra" (to console families of those who committed suicide or died of shock following YSR's death) which angered the Congress leadership and finally led to his and his mother Vijayamma's resignations from Congress party in late 2010.

Unmindful of the ridicule the yatra attracted from both Congress and TDP, the young leader succeeded in silently building a rapport with the people at the grass-root by invoking the name of his father, who was seen as a pro-poor man for schemes like free electricity to farmers, free healthcare and education to poor.

The real troubles for Jagan began when Congress legislator P. Shankar Rao approached the state high court in late 2010, seeking a CBI probe into his "ill-gotten" wealth. Treating Shankar Rao's letter as a public interest litigation, the court in August last year ordered probe by the central agency.

The CBI, which booked Jagan and 71 others, believed he conspired with his father to dole out land, licenses and other concessions to various companies in return for the investments they made into his firms including Telugu daily and television channel 'Sakshi'.

As the CBI also pointed finger at YSR, Jagan used this to garner sympathy for himself. At every public meeting he addressed, he attacked the Congress for being ungrateful to YSR by maligning him after his death.

It was in 2005 that YSR, in an attempt to groom Jagan as his political successor, made his brother Y.S. Vivekananda Reddy resign from Kadapa MP to pave way for Jagan.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi scuttled the move and advised YSR to wait till 2009.

Jagan not only made his electoral debut with a victory in Kadapa but also campaigned for the Congress in few districts. He proved an instant hit with mannerisms resembling that of his popular father.

His father's sudden death in a helicopter crash just as he was learning the tricks of the trade shattered Jagan's dreams.

Born on Dec 21, 1972 in Kadapa, Jagan is the only son of YSR. A graduate in commerce, he entered into business at a young age. He is married to Bharathi Reddy and has two daughters.

Jagan, who has interests in mining, cement, power and media, launched a newspaper and TV channel in 2008 to further his political ambitions.

YSR's death opened the floodgates for the demands of a probe into the dramatic increase in Jagan's wealth. The young leader, however, claims that it is his hard-earned money as a businessman.