Not a day of peace...-YS Bharathi

It's been three years and 13 days to the day, since my father-in-law Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy left us, and 112 days since Jagan has been put in jail. However, it feels like we have gone through the travails of 30 years in this period.

My father-in-law was a colossal figure— a messiah for all all sections of people in the state. Irrespective of which party people belonged to, he would find a solution for everyone's problems. Despite his busy schedule as a chief minister, he always managed to make time for his family and never abdicated his filial responsibilities. He would offer advice when sought and guide us along every step of the way. He always had a word of encouragement for everybody, a pat on the back for all and counseled those who came to him with words of comfort.  He would never say 'no' when it came to helping others. During a crisis, he would infuse confidence in others with his encouraging words as few others could. His presence itself was a fountainhead of inspiration and possibly, the biggest reassurance to all of us.

God snatched from amidst us such a person, someone who was a pillar of support and source of strength to all of us. It felt as if the very earth under our feet shook and uprooted our lives. From that day to this hour, we have not experienced a single moment of peace or happiness in our lives. During this time of distress, those who ought to have stood by us and provided solace to us, turned strangers. Worse, they turned into our tormentors. Despite all the misery heaped on us and agony we were subjected to, by the grace of God and the overwhelming support of my father-in-law's followers—the common masses, Jagan stepped forward to serve the public. His was a message that struck a chord in the hearts of the people. They saw in him an image of his father. They responded  by spontaneously showering on him the same love and affection that they had for his father. But his detractors could not bear to see this. They filed scores of cases against Jagan, as if being committed to his word was a sin. They had our houses raided and  tormented us at every step. On the one hand, political parties ganged up against us, while on the other, a section of the print and electronic media became their principal ally in spreading vicious lies and fallacious stories.They outdid even the most poisonous snakes in venom, vengeance and vindictiveness!

Amidst all this, Ghulam Nabi Azad during the course of his campaign for the by-polls observed, "Had Jagan stayed back in our party, we would have made him a Union minister. Later, we would have made him the chief minister too." This statement makes it quite apparent that Jagan went to jail only because he disagreed with them. My heart gets weighed down with sorrow each time I recall those words.

Despite all the torture, Jagan remained completely unperturbed and did not waver from his chosen path. He would say, "As long as I have the support of the people of our state, people whose hearts beat for my father, as long as I have the blessings of my dear father and God, there's nothing to fear." Isn't this true? Why should Jagan worry when he's committed to serving the people?

This seemed to have riled his detractors even more. They arrested him and thought they could intimidate Jagan in this manner. But this did not deter Jagan in any way. So now, they are out to deny him bail. They are exploring every dirty trick in the book to keep him in jail—be it spreading false rumours or resorting to unethical practices. At one point there's news about our lawyer being changed followed by another report that says CBI's got a new counsel! Any action or inaction of ours is seen as a crime. Their pens are not filled with ink, but sludge!

There are a whole lot of problems that plague the state today and people are constantly saddled with miseries. However, the TDP is least bothered about the suffering of the common man. Their sole target is Jagan. They spent all their time  on hurling baseless allegations against Jagan and indulging in mudslinging. Had they spent some this time on paying genuine attention to people's problems, the party could have at least gained people's confidence to some extent. However, their intention is only to show Jagan in poor light. Similarly, the desperate attempts of Congressmen  to cling to power by speaking ill of Jagan only backfired on them. 

My father-in-law had a political career spanning more than three decades. But never did he once think of back-stabbing someone to get ahead. Had he been alive today, would he have targeted the son of Chandrababu Naidu, Botsa, Kiran Kumar Reddy or Ramoji Rao to torture his opponents? Never! Would he have stooped down to the level of instigating a campaign against one person to derive sadistic pleasure? Absolutely not! His is a legacy of reaching out to feed the starving, of always being ready to lend a helping hand and of loving even his enemies — which is why he became a legend!

Today, we are surrounded by bigwigs—so called well-educated people occupying top posts. But it's the uneducated, poverty-stricken people who have accepted Jagan as a part of their family. They pledged their support to Jagan showing the human face to everyday life. Jagan, who was in a state of deep sorrow after losing his father, was embraced by many who considered him as one of their own. They stood by him in his hour of need and helped secure record-breaking wins to Jagan's candidates for 2 MP and 17 MLA posts. People's overwhelming support to Jagan was reflected in surveys conducted by front-ranking and reliable media houses like NDTV, India Today. The results sent a loud and clear message to all—that what's going on is a conspiracy against Jagan! What more can one ask for?

Jagan is not familiar with the rough and tumble of dirty politics and petty conspiracies. That's the reason why his detractors have ganged up to isolate him.

We invite our readers who wish to stand by Jagan and the people of the state to express their views. We also invite them to share their thoughts on Jagan's unlawful arrest, the malicious propaganda unleashed by his detractors and the harassment the YSR family has been subjected to. 
Write to Jagan Kosam, Sakshi (family supplement)
Sakshi, Road no. 1, Banjara Hills,
Hyderabad-500034
e-mail ysjagankosam@gmail.com