Andhra Pradesh’s ruling Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) has picked senior leader and Rajya Sabha member V Vijayasai Reddy as its candidate from Nellore for the upcoming Lok Sabha election.
The candidate, who is said to be close to party president and chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, is extremely excited about his first election to the House of the People.
“I have worked for the party from 2011 ever since its inception and I have handled various elections, including 2014. I have always had the desire to contest elections, and I am excited that I got the opportunity this time. I consider anybody a leader only when he can make a space in the hearts of the people,” Vijayasai Reddy told News18 in an exclusive chat.
Andhra Pradesh will have simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly elections on May 13. A total of 25 seats in the Lok Sabha and 175 in the assembly will be up for grabs. The votes will be counted on June 4.
Confident that the people will elect the YSR government again to the assembly, Reddy says that the party’s government in the state from 2019 to 2024 has done a lot of work for the common man.
“87% of the people of the state of Andhra Pradesh have been beneficiaries of Jagan Mohan Reddy-led government schemes or policies. We have had a focus on the empowerment of the poor and the downtrodden in society. People have to be happy with the governance from 2019 to 2024,” the Nellore candidate said.
Dismissing the allegation of the opposition parties that Jagan has encouraged a culture of free doles, Vijayasai Reddy argued that his has been a government of welfare as well as development. “Over the last five years, we have had a very good blend of government that focused on welfare schemes and also development. We in particular have been focused on infrastructure for health and education, and that’s the reason every district has a government hospital. Apart from this, we have built roads, a fishing harbour, etc. The work that we have done gives us enough confidence that we will better our record than last time,” he said.
Why is the Centre including Narendra Modi continuing to question the Congress and other parties who are proposing reservation for the Muslim community, Reddy said. He reiterated the stand of the YSRCP that it will neither deny nor cancel such reservation available to the Muslim community.
“Late YS Rajasekhara Reddy had announced reservation for the backward class in Muslims. This was challenged in both the High Court as well as the Supreme Court, and the full bench of the HC had supported it to be given. As of now, there is no question of any withdrawal of such reservation, which has been given. If at all there is any move whatsoever to remove such a reservation given to the Muslim community at large, the YSRCP will stand at the forefront, opposing it,” Vijayasai Reddy said.
While the BJP manifesto and senior leaders like PM Modi and union home minister Amit Shah have announced the party’s intention to bring a uniform civil code (UCC) for the country, the YSRCP general secretary said that his party will oppose it.
“Our stand on the uniform civil code is very clear and defined both by the party as well as our party president. Any bill which has been brought for passage in Parliament must have the will of the community leaders. India has a multicultural and multi-ethnic society, and the desire of the people must feature in any changes. Political parties may try to use possible ways to pass the bill forcibly in Parliament. However, YSR Congress does not accept a bill that is not acceptable to the community leaders, including Muslims. We stand in opposition to UCC,” Reddy said.
In 2019, not only did the YSRCP sweep the assembly elections, leaving the N Chandrababu Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party (TDP) battered but also bagged 22 out of the 25 state’s Lok Sabha seats.
“We have done a lot of good work and that gives us confidence that we will win all 25 Lok Sabha seats and all 175 assembly seats. It is a lone war that the YSR Congress is fighting against three parties, namely BJP, Jana Sena, and TDP, who have come together. We will hit the bullseye and get a perfect score, and that is certainly not an exaggeration,” Vijayasai Reddy said.
Check Lok Sabha Election 2024 Phase 3 Schedule, Key Candidates And Constituencies At News18 Website.
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