Jayalalithaa's conviction in wealth case spurs talk of Jagan's fate

Hyderabad: With Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalitha jailed in the disproportionate assets case, leaders of different parties are now discussing the fate of YSR Congress president, Jagan Mohan Reddy, who is facing more serious charges.

Besides Mr Reddy, quite a few other political leaders and a host of bureaucrats are facing serious criminal charges in 11 chargesheets filed so far by the CBI in the quid pro quo investments case.

The trial of the cases has not taken off yet and it is still a matter of speculation how long it will continue and when the final judgment will be delivered. The chargesheets have been filed and charges have been framed by the court in phases since 2012.

Though the Supreme Court had desired that  a fair trail in all ongoing cases against people’s representatives should be concluded within a year, legal issues that are involved at various stages, both by the prosecution and defence, might necessitate interference by the High Court and SC. However, Ms Jayalalithaa’s sentence has kicked up a debate in political circles as to what will be the fate of Mr Reddy and his YSR Congress by the 2019 elections.

One of Mr Reddy’s advisors said, “One cannot compare Ms Jayalalithaa’s case with Mr Reddy. What she did was as the CM, Mr Reddy was never in power and did not use or misuse his position. The entire CBI case relies upon the quid pro quo angle, which according to us, cannot be established since Mr Reddy was never involved.”

Notwithstanding what will happen on the legal front, Telugu Desam leaders have already started issuing damaging statements that Mr Reddy will also meet the same fate as Ms Jayalalithaa.

A YSR Congress spokesperson said, “It all depends on how fast the TD-BJP combine’s rule in Andhra Pradesh loses its credibility. We should  also see whether people prefer the Congress. As far as Mr Reddy is concerned, his strengths could not ensure power to the party. We must hope on negative voting and weaknesses of the TD-BJP combine by the next Assembly polls. Even if Mr Reddy is convicted, we do not see why people may not prefer Vijayalaxmi or Sharmila Reddy. A lot depends on how people react to the developments over the next few years.