Tirupati, Aug 19 (IANS) Former YSR Congress Party MP V. Vijayasai Reddy on Wednesday announced plans to launch a new political party in Andhra Pradesh.
Vijayasai Reddy, once a close aide of former Chief Minister and YSR Congress Party president Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, said that he is launching the party on behalf of the people and to raise the voice of the people.
He was talking to the media after offering prayers at Tirumala temple.
The former Rajya Sabha member said he would unveil his political roadmap at a press conference in Vijayawada later this month.
Vijayasai Reddy, who was the general secretary of YSRCP and leader of the YSRCP parliamentary party, resigned from the party and from the Rajya Sabha in January 2025.
Once a close confidant of Jagan and a key strategist for the YSRCP chief, Vijayasai had announced his retirement from politics. He had declared that he is not joining any political party.
Vijayasai Reddy had clarified that his decision was entirely personal and stated that he would forever be indebted to the YSR family, saying they supported him for four decades and across three generations.
Vijayasai Reddy, FCA and policy practitioner, was associated with the YSR family for four decades as their personal auditor and was even rewarded with the post of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) trust board member during the YSR regime.
He became close to Jagan after the death of his father and former chief minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR) in a helicopter crash in 2009.
Vijayasai Reddy had been with Jagan through thick and thin ever since Jagan quit the Congress party to float YSR Congress in 2010.
He was named accused number two in the disproportionate assets case booked against Jagan by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Vijayasai Reddy was arrested by the CBI in 2012 and remained in jail for about 100 days before he was released on bail.
The CBI had charged Vijayasai Reddy as the kingpin, the brain behind the formation of several “shell” companies through which money was allegedly routed into Jagan’s firms, including Jagathi Publications, as investments.
Vijayasai Reddy emerged as a key leader after YSRCP stormed to power in Andhra Pradesh in 2019.
As the YSRCP parliamentary party leader, he played a crucial role in securing the support of the BJP-led NDA for the state and the party.
He contested unsuccessfully for the Lok Sabha from the Nellore constituency in the 2024 elections.
–IANS
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