Minister for Textiles and Handlooms P Shankar Rao on Friday extended his personal invitation to former Kadapa MP YS Jaganmohan Reddy to rejoin the Congress party.
Talking to reporters after a darshan of Lord Venkateswara at Tirumala, the Minister expressed confidence that Mr Jaganmohan Reddy would accept his invitation and change his mind and rejoin the Congress party.
Mr Jaganmohan Reddy’s ‘homecoming’ would give a new lease of life to the party, the Minister said.
Dr Shankar Rao said that the former MP took the decision of quitting from the Congress and launching his own party since he was under pressure from his sycophants.
Brushing aside the reasons given by Mr Jaganmohan Reddy in his five-page resignation letter for quitting the Congress, the Minister said that “If Jagan is obedient and follows the High Command orders loyally like his father and former chief minister YSR did, he would also become a tall leader in the state.”
The Kadapa leader had said that a coterie around the High Command had alienated him from the Congress and had also spread canards. He had also charged the same coterie of driving a wedge in his family with an intention to split it.
“If Mr Jaganmohan Reddy rejoins Congress party, I will tour along with him in the 23 districts in the state and participate in his yatras,” Dr Shankar Rao said.
Reacting on the speculation being aired that Chief Minister would be replaced, the Minister said that the High Command will continue with Mr N Kiran Kumar Reddy until it takes a decision on Telangana state formation.
After the formation of separate state, elections will be held for Telangana state in 2012, Dr Shankar Rao said.