Rajya Sabha MP Vijayasai Reddy, who issued a show-cause notice to Narsapuram Lok Sabha MP Raghurama Krishnam Raju, on Friday confirmed that the YSRCP party has submitted a disqualification petition against him.

Talking to the media after meeting Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Vijayasai Reddy said Raju had consistently lowered the public image of the party by making anti-party statements. “The heart and soul of Raghurama Krishnam Raju is not with the YSRCP party,” Vijayasai Reddy stated. He said the YSRCP after much deliberations on the matter has finally decided to initiate stringent possible action against the Lok Sabha Speaker. Vijayasai Reddy said the YSRCP leadership gave utmost respect to Raju, despite this he has been making anti-party statements.

Vijayasai Reddy recalled that Raju was appointed as Narasapuram as the chairman of the Subordinate Legislation Committee. Vijayasai Reddy said while Raghuram Krishnam Raju claims to be the faithful soldier of Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress party, his statements prove otherwise. “His words and actions are contradictory. He has been using most objectionable language against the party’s MLAs. It is not acceptable to the party. He violated the party’s internal discipline. Raju’s actions compelled the party to move a disqualification petition against him,” Vijayasai Reddy pointed out.

Meanwhile, YSRCP Mithun Reddy said the people should get ready for bypolls in Narsapuram even as Raju’s disqualification is yet to be approved by the Lok Sabha Speaker.

Earlier in the day, YSRCP MPs including Nandigama Suresh, Margani Bharat Ram, Mithun Reddy and Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu left to New Delhi in a special flight from Vijayawada. The MPs complained to the Lok Sabha Speaker that Raju was indulging in anti-party activities. Along with the disqualification petition, the YSRCP MPs also submitted soft copies of Raju’s public statements to strengthen their argument that the Narsapuram Lok Sabha MP was Raju making anti-party remarks to lower the party’s public image.

On Thursday, Raju dubbed the MPs flight to New Delhi a mere show. “The MPs and lawyers are meeting the Lok Sabha Speaker with the consent of the Chief Minister. MPs and lawyers flying from Vijayawada to Delhi to meet the Lok Sabha Speaker is a wasteful expenditure and an exercise in futility. The MPs could have mailed their grievance. Why take a special flight? This is nothing but a mere show. Ultimately, it is taxpayers money,” he criticised.

On Friday, Raju has already filed a petition in the Andhra Pradesh High Court against show cause notice issued to him by Vijayasai Reddy. The MP argued that the show cause notice issued was misleading.

In his petition, Raju also contended that Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party has not constituted a disciplinary committee to take action against him. Earlier, replying to the show cause notice, Raju questioned its legal sanctity as the party was registered as Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party and not as YSR Congress Party under whose letterhead the show cause notice was issued.

“Please be informed that Anna YSR Congress Party is another political party registered with the Election Commission of India. The Election Commission of India has refused to register the name YSR Congress Party when we applied on May 6, 2015,” Raju had stated in his reply to the show cause notice. Further, he sought to know in what capacity Vijayasai Reddy has sent the show cause notice to him.

“I am surprised to see you designating yourself as national general secretary of our party which is Registered as State recognised party as per Para 6A of the Election Symbols Reservation and Allotment Order 1968.”

In a rude jolt to Rajya Sabha MP and YSRCP general secretary Vijayasai Reddy on his birthday, Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy stripped him of his responsibility of overseeing party affairs at his Tadepalli camp office.

Vijaya Sai Reddy is considered as Jagan’s man Friday. Considered to be Jagan’s trusted lieutenant and a master strategist, Vijayasai Reddy stood by Jagan through thick and thin. The party general secretary stood by Jagan and even went to jail with him in the disproportionate assets and quid pro quo cases. He has been with Jagan when he was going through a rough patch, especially when he was facing the CBI heat in the disproportionate assets case. However, Jagan has restricted the role of Vijayasai Reddy. While limiting the role of Vijayasai Reddy, the YSRCP president has asked him to oversee the party affairs in North Andhra (Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Vizag).

Jagan has entrusted his advisor Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy to oversee party affairs at Tadepalli office. Further, Y V Subbareddy was asked to oversee and monitor party affairs in Godavari, Krishna, Guntur and Chittoor districts.

Political observers said this is the first step taken by Jagan Mohan Reddy to sideline Vijayasai Reddy. However, speculations over differences between Jagan and Vijayasai Reddy emerged when the latter was not part of the team that visited Vizag to console the victims of the gas tragedy.

However, Vijaya Sai Reddy scoffed at the speculation reports that he had been sidelined by Jagan owing to some differences. He termed such reports as cooked up stories and that he had remained a close follower of Jagan since the formation of the YSRCP.

Interestingly, Vijayasai Reddy was conspicuously absent when Jagan Mohan Reddy flagged off a fleet of 1,088 vehicles of 108 and 104 ambulances at Benz Circle in Vijayawada on Wednesday. Jagan along with ministers Kali Krishna Srinivas, Peddireddi Ramachandra Reddy and officials of the departments concerned took part in the launch ceremony.

Jagan apparently distanced Vijayasai Reddy with growing criticism from the opposition over prematurely cancelling the existing contract with ‘108’ service provider BVG India Ltd. The opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) had claimed this was done in order to give the contract at a higher price to Aurobindo Pharma Foundation Consortium, which is co-founded by P V Ramprasad Reddy, who is related to Vijayasai Reddy.

The YSRCP leadership has given a terse message to MLAs and MPs who express unhappiness against the party policies and told them in categorical terms that the leadership will not tolerate any indiscipline.

Rajya Sabha MP Vijayasai Reddy, widely known as A2, stated that inter-party discipline is supreme and the party will take strong action against those who violate it. Vijayasai Reddy on Wednesday said show-cause notice was issued to Raghurama Krishnam Raju for transgressing party discipline.

Further, Vijayasai Reddy noted that the party will wait for the response from Raju and necessary action will be taken depending on the response. The Rajya Sabha MP pointed out that the party had given utmost respect to Raju among all the MPs. Vijayasai Reddy also reminded that Raghurama Krishnam Raju was given the post of chairman of Legislative Committee in Parliament. However, Raju has breached the party discipline which will not be tolerated, Vijayasai Reddy said.

The YSRCP leadership has been mightily displeased with Lok Sabha MP Raghurama Krishnam Raju’s recent comments. Raju has been publicly voicing his opinion on various omissions and commissions of the YSRCP government, including its policy on sand, land and liquor. The Lok Sabha MP openly expressed his displeasure over the proposed sale of TTD assets stating that such a move would hurt the sentiments of the devotees. The YSRCP MP had also raised the issue of sand scarcity in AP due to the flawed policy adopted by the Jagan government which has led to a steep spike in the price of sand thereby paralyzing the construction industry. More recently, Raghu Rama krishnam Raju used Rajanikant’s popular dialogue (Nanna pandule gumpuga vastayi simham Single ga vastundi — pigs come in herd , but a lion walks in solo) to hit out at his political critics.

Raju also dashed off a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla expressing fear of threat to his life from his party’s leaders in his native district West Godavari district. In his letter written to the Speaker on June 18, Raju had requested that he be provided security by police protection in the wake of increased threats from YSRCP leader.

On Wednesday, the LS MP stated that he will respond to the show-cause notice in a day or two, while pointing out that he only raised certain issues through videos as he could not get personal appointment with the Chief Minister. Since he was not getting an appointment with the CM, he was left with no option but to make the “suggestions” through the media with an intention that the issues he had raised will be addressed by the party high command.

In recent times, the YSRCP leaders have come out in the open to criticise Jagan’s sand policy. Vinukonda YSRCP MLA Bolla Brahma Naidu admitted that the sand mafia was operating rampantly in Andhra Pradesh. YSRCP MLA Kileru Rosaiah bemoaned that the sand was not reaching stock points, while Kothapet YSRCP legislator Jaggi Reddy slammed the APMDC saying it had miserably failed to supply sand to everyone. Jaggi Reddy found fault with the online sale of sand. He said the moment one attempts to book sand through online, the sales seem to be over in five minutes.

YCP controversial MP Vijayasai Reddy is known for his complicated tweets. His tweets used to be especially bitter and caste-based and often objectionably personal against Chandrababu Naidu and Lokesh. He used to take the lead to make counter attacks on rivals whenever his party confronted a crisis. Now, the greatest political crisis is posed to Jagan Reddy Government when it is celebrating completion of its first one year rule. The AP High Court has cancelled the Ordinance and ordered that Nimmagadda Ramesh Kumar would continue as the State Election Commissioner till his full term lasts.

The moment the court order came out, Opposition parties launched scathing attacks demanding resignation of Jagan Reddy. On behalf of the YCP, Advisor Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy, MLA RK Roja, Ministers Audimulapu Suresh took upon themselves the task of countering the rival attacks. For the first time since last elections, Vijayasai Reddy has not made a single comment nor issued a single tweet. He fell silent during LG Polymers tragedy itself but somehow he went to Visakhapatnam and tried to cover up the situation a little. However, on the return of SEC Ramesh Kumar, Vijayasai stayed totally silent.

Already, there are reports that all is not well between Jagan Reddy and Vijayasai Reddy. It is said CM was unhappy with the MP ever since some unpalatable comments made by him in the CBI court a few weeks ago. The crisis is deepening in YCP internal politics.

Even as Andhra Pradesh continues to see a surge of corona crisis with the state registering more than 500 cases, the YSRCP leaders seem to be more bothered about elections to civic bodies and rather busier on how to further nail the former State Election Commissioner after first sacking him from his office.

On Wednesday, senior YSRCP leader and Rajya Sabja member Vijayasai Reddy shot off a letter to DGP Gautam Sawang asking the police officials to seriously look into who had sent the letter to the Union home secretary purportedly written by Nimmagadda Ramesh Kumar. In the letter to DGP, Vijayasai Reddy alleged that the letter was not written by Ramesh Kumar and “in fact it was a fake and forged one”.

Vijayasai Reddy said the tone and tenor of the letter indicates it might not have been written by Ramesh Kumar asked the DGP to trace the IP address to find out from which system the letter purportedly written by Ramesh Kumar was sent the Union home secretary. “It is fake and a forged letter,” YSRCP Rajya Sabha member wrote to the DGP.

As a matter of fact, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kishan Reddy confirmed that the Union Home Ministry did receive a letter from Ramesh Kumar seeking protection from central forces for him and his family members as he feared physical attacks from the YSRCP leaders. In the letter, Ramesh Kumar made serious allegations against the YSRCP government and the Andhra Pradesh police.

Ramesh Kumar had written the letter after deferring the elections citing corona virus threat. At that time, not a single corona case was reported. The deferment of polls was challenged by the YSRCP in Supreme Court which upheld the SEC’s decision. The Opposition parties hailed the SEC decision saying the move has averted a big danger to the state in light of corona virus. In the meanwhile, the state government hurriedly moved an Ordinance to remove Ramesh Kumar by amending the AP Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, and cut short the tenure of SEC to three years from five years. The Opposition leaders termed the state government’s decision to remove Ramesh Kumar as undemocratic and said had it not been for him the situation in Andhra Pradesh could have been worse. Andhra Pradesh reported more than 500 cases thereafter with at least 11 deaths.