Jagan may put off Praja Sankalpa Yatra for a week

Flooded with appeals from cadres to take rest

YSR Congress Party president may put off his Praja Sankalpa Yatra for a week in deference to appeals being made by the party’s rank and file from North Andhra to allow the injury he suffered, during a knife attack on him at the airport here, to heal.

Mr. Reddy, the Leader of Opposition, took a break from his walkathon in Vizianagaram district on Thursday to appear in a court in connection with certain cases on Friday. His yatra is fashioned on the lines of Praja Prajaprastham-the outreach programme undertaken by his father late Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s Praja Prajasthanm which led to dislodging of the Chandrababu Naidu Government from power in 2014.

The injury Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy suffered in the attack by a waiter during his halt in the VIP lounge at the Visakhapatnam International Airport set off a political storm with both Telugu Desam Party and YSRCP trading charges against each other over the incident.

“The nine sutures made on his shoulder following the stabbing led to suspension of yatra. As he has to fold his hands repeatedly to greet acknowledgement from his followers during the yatra, we have asked him to take rest for sometime and resume the padayatra only after he recouped completely,” YSRCP Anakapalle constituency coordinator Gudivada Amarnath told The Hindu on Saturday.

Mr. Reddy completed 3,000 km-mark when he entered the neighbouring Vizianagaram district last month. Party cadres are now busy ordering flexis and banners carrying the photos of their leader with the widely-publicised bloodstains on his shoulder after sustaining the injury at the airport.

“To expose the TDP conspiracy to kill our leader by buying a former party follower, we will go to any extent. Now our only concern is recovery of Jagananna,” party leader Koyya Prasada Reddy said.

The Praja Sankalpa Yatra is aimed at listing out the problems of the people so as to list them in the party’s election manifesto. Late YSR’s daughter Sharmlia had completed 3,112-km long Maro Praja Prasthanam Yatra in 230 days on July 29, 2013.

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