Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy had a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday in Delhi. The two leaders held an hour-long meeting and were said to have discussed various issues, including national politics.
While the chief minister’s office in Tadepalli claims that the chief minister had discussed the issues relating to the state, what actually transpired between them is said to be a different issue. Sources say that the two leaders have discussed the forthcoming elections to the post of President.
The Presidential election is scheduled for July 2022, three to four months from now. As the BJP is yet to name its candidate for the Presidential polls, sources say that the Prime Minister had a word with Jagan Mohan Reddy on the consensus candidate.
Though Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSR Congress is not part of the BJP-led NDA government, the party’s vote is important for the BJP to get its candidate won the election. Since the YSR Congress had backed the BJP-led NDA candidate Ram Nath Kovid in 2017 elections, the Prime Minister is understood to have sought support from the YSR Congress this time too.
Sources also say that Jagan Mohan Reddy and Narendra Modi have discussed the impending Rajya Sabha elections from Andhra Pradesh. Four BJP members and one YSR Congress member are due for retirement in June this year. The BJP’s strength had come down to 100 members in the 245-member House. With three members retiring in June from AP, the BJP strength would further fall.
At the same time, the YSR Congress Party’s strength will go up to 9 members against six members now. Given the strength of the party in the Assembly, the YSR Congress will clearly win all the four seats. However, it is said that Narendra Modi is said to have asked for one seat to be given to the Adani family.
In the last Rajya Sabha elections from Andhra Pradesh, Jagan Mohan Reddy had given one seat to the Ambani family, now represented by Parimal Nathwani. Similarly, this time Jagan Mohan Reddy is likely to give one seat to the Ambani family, which is said to be discussed by both Modi and Jagan.
