The numbers are nothing short of spectacular. In 2004, according to figures declared by his father Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s assets amounted to a meagre `9.18 lakh. In May 2011, when he fought a by-election, his assets had touched an astronomical `365 crore while his wife had another `41.33 crore in her name. His detractors say that his real worth is several times over, what with his properties, shares and interests in businesses. If he was a company, his shares would be hot property on the stock market and he would have become a case study in business schools, just for his ability to maximise value.
Instead, he has become a byword for corruption and malfeasance, an example of how politicians can and do milk their clout to enrich themselves. More striking is the sheer brazenness he has displayed: The opulent lifestyle (a huge mansion with a helipad), the in-your-face attitude and the naked ambition of using this pelf for personal gain. For Jagan, who is now facing a slew of charges, is not in it for just the riches; he wishes to leverage his alleged fortune to ride to power. There have been others in the past who were accused of large scale corruption and amassing ill-gotten wealth, but this appears to be a class apart.
Like a spoilt child, he has demanded and got everything he has wanted. And when he faced refusal for the first time, he rebelled. He had an assumption (born more out of short-sighted hubris than rational assessment) that he would become the chief minister when his father died suddenly. When that did not happen, he went on the warpath. Political ambition is not a bad thing in itself; what we saw was petulance and a sense of that the post was his for the taking for no other reason but that he was his father’s son. This was not just a case of dynasty, which has now become part of our political culture. Most sons and daughters, even if they do get a ticket thanks to their parents, have to then put in gruelling political work to move up the ladder. His father too had come up the normal way. Jagan had come to believe that it was his God-given right to move into the top chair.
The defence that has come from Jagan’s camp is that others are corrupt too, why pick on him. That is laughable. Any corruption has to be dealt with by the law and when it becomes flagrant and barefaced, it has to be dealt with even more rapidly. The evidence of his sudden riches was there for all to see; the law had to act. Corruption is a hot subject now; anyone seen as shielding the corrupt will have to face the ire of the public. Jagan tried to position himself as a crusader, as a man on a mission, but his own glass house was so vulnerable that it was all bound to collapse sooner than later.
It is to be noted that no political party in the state has come out in his support. They cannot — the circumstances and the allegations are much too blatant to be defended. This is not about politics, this is about accountability. Cases cannot be decided on the basis of rumours and innuendo, of course; facts and proof are paramount. But there is much that is in the public eye and the CBI’s allegations make shocking reading. This is a case that has many ramifications for those in public life.