Andhra Pradesh: Roadmap for 2024 polls on the anvil

Vijayawada: The founder-president of YSR Congress Party YS Jagan Mohan Reddy faces multiple challenges ahead of the two-day plenary that begins at Guntur on Friday. The party leadership has announced it to be a prestigious gathering with at least half a million attendance of its cadres.

The plenary of the party comes at challenging times for the chief of the party. All is not hunky-dory for the party in power for the last three years. No doubt, the party had won 151 Assembly seats in 2019. It was a massive victory by all means and Jagan won the popular mandate on his "one chance' plea to the voters. As a Chief Minister, Jagan Mohan Reddy might claim his comfort levels are high because of his welfare measures and direct benefit transfers as promised to several sections of society.

But he is also aware of the fact that satisfaction with the government's performance does not mean absence of anti-incumbency when he seeks a second term in 2024. There are several factors that go into the well-being of any political party and the performance of the MLAs is key to this.

The YSRCP is on a sticky wicket on this count going by Jagan's own survey that was disclosed by the CM himself at a meeting of his party leaders recently. The CM had to chastise his MLAs and warn them of consequences if they 'connect well' with the people of their constituencies. Voters in several constituencies feel that the elected representatives have either become 'monarchs' or 'very selective' in their 'public service'. Not a good sign. Problem is also with their 'coordination' with their colleagues in their respective districts. Complaints galore could be found even in case of senior leaders and perhaps, the greater the seniority, the worse is the situation. The bonhomie quotient among the ministers too is questionable, it is said. Maybe, the Chief Minister himself is more accessible to the people than to his MLAs and MPs. Not a single leader could say with confidence "I have his ears". That being the case, the CM would have a tough job in driving his point home in the plenary.

The Opposition may be in disarray due to various challenges in the State, but Jagan Mohan Reddy could not afford to be complacent. Notwithstanding the 'good job' that he claims to be doing, there is a huge ground to be covered in the above aspects. Will he be able to address these concerns effectively?