Congress rediscovers YSR's greatness

Barely three months ago, one of the high-profile campaigners for the Congress party in the June by-polls, Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is in-charge of party affairs in the state, launched a tirade against YSR, claiming on more than one occasion it was he ( Azad) who had mooted schemes like five percent reservation for Muslims and pension for widows.

Not to be outdone, APCC Chief Botsa Satyanarayana claimed on many occasions  that YSR was not at all responsible for introducing welfare schemes at an individual level. Botsa asserted that all the schemes belonged to the Congress party. He went to the extent of saying during the by-polls that YS. Vijayamma and YS.Jagan Mohan Reddy were responsible for the tragic demise of YSR in September 2009.
It was Ghulam Nabi Azad or Botsa or a few local leaders or ministers. All Congress functionaries including Central minister Vayalar Ravi did not spare YSR while campaigning for the Congress. They flew hammer and tongs at him. They blamed him for all the ills of the State.
They remained silent when he was named as the accused number one in the CBI charge-sheet.
Congressmen at all levels ganged up with the opposition to blame YSR for every scam, and heaped all blame on him.  The masses were not to be fooled and showed their resentment at this attitude of the Congress and TDP silently, but firmly by rejecting both the parties in the by-elections.
Now as the countdown to the general elections has begun, the Congress Party has suddenly rediscovered the greatness of Dr. YSR. The Congress has unveiled its new strategy of trying to claim Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy as their man. On his death anniversary on September 2, several Congress leaders including the Chief Minister and the APCC Chief sang high praises of YSR, garlanded his statues and said that they owed their political careers to him.

A galaxy of Congress leaders barring the party president, Sonia Gandhi, and Rahul Gandhi were present on the occasion of K.V.P. Ramachandra Rao's book-launch. In a chorus all of them praised YSR to the skies.
What has surprised many is why the Congress leaders suddenly discovered their love and respect for YSR three years after his tragic death..
The Congress party leadership in the State, and perhaps to some extent in the Centre, knows all too well that they cannot face the people with Kiran Kumar Reddy, Botsa Satyanarayana, Chiranjeevi or any other 'star' crowd puller. They have to invoke Dr. YSR's name. Slowly, they are forced to wear a mask on their face hailing YSR. But the people of this state have enough wisdom to see through the mask.
-siva@sakshipost