Yeduguri Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy (8 July 1949 – 2 September 2009), popularly known as
YSR, was a two-time Chief Minister of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, serving from 2004 to 2009. He has been viewed by some as the most popular chief minister of Andhra Pradesh.
His popularity is often attributed to the welfare schemes and
development programs he championed for the people of his state. The BBC, for instance, called him a champion of social welfare schemes.
Reddy was elected to the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th Lok Sabha from the Kadapa
constituency for four terms and to the Andhra Pradesh Assembly for five
terms from the Pulivendula constituency. He won every election he
contested.
In 2003 he undertook a three-month-long paadayaatra, or walking tour of
1475 km during the very hot summer months, across several districts in
Andhra Pradesh as a part of his election campaign.
He led his party to victory in the following general and assembly
elections held in 2004, and did the same in 2009. He is the only chief
minister of the state to have served again after a full term.
On 2 September 2009, a helicopter carrying Reddy went missing in the Nallamala
forest area. The next morning media reported that the helicopter
wreckage had been found on top of Rudrakonda Hill, 40 nautical miles
(74 km) from Kurnool. This was later confirmed by the Prime Minister's office. The five people aboard were pronounced dead at the scene of the crash
Personal life and religious beliefs
Reddy was married to Vijaya Lakshmi.
They had one son, politician Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, and one daughter, Y. S. Sharmila.
Reddy' younger brother Y. S. Vivekananda Reddy is also a Congress (I) politician.
Reddy's parents came from a communist region and were devout Christians,
as was Reddy, who was buried according to Christian rites.
Reddy visited Bethlehem and other historically important Christian places in Israel twice. He also visited Tirupati regularly
Positions held
- Minister of State for rural development (1980–82)
- Excise Minister (1982)
- Education Minister (1982–83)
- Leader of Opposition, Andhra Pradesh State Assembly (1999–2004)
- Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh (2004–2009)
- Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh (20-May-2009 To 2 September 2009)
Death
2009 Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister helicopter crash
Reddy's Bell 430 helicopter went missing on Wednesday, 2 September 2009 at 9:35 am. Begumpet and Shamshabad air traffic controllers lost contact with the aircraft at 10:02 am while it was passing through the dense Nallamala forest area. The Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh, P. Ramakanth Reddy, said that inclement weather had forced the helicopter off course. Although the sparsely populated forest area is considered to be a stronghold of the outlawed Naxal
communist insurgents, the National Security Advisor of India ruled out
the possibility of the Naxals bringing down the helicopter.
The Indian Prime Minister's Office confirmed the helicopter's crash
on the morning of 3 September and the death of all aboard, including
Reddy, his special secretary P. Subrahmanyam, chief security officer A. S. C. Wesley, Group Captain S. K. Bhatia and Captain M. S. Reddy.
The Director General of Police said that the bodies of Reddy and others
were charred beyond recognition and had to be identified on the basis
of clothing. The autopsy of all the bodies was carried out at Kurnool Medical College.
An investigation eventually concluded that the factors that caused
that crash included a problem with the transmission oil pressure system
that distracted the crew from the worsening weather for more than six
minutes. It was also noted that the pilots of the helicopter never
discussed the bad weather, diverting, or returning to base.
Reddy's body was buried on 4 September at Idupulapai in Kadapa district with full state honours in accordance with Christian rites.
Aftermath
A Telugu television station, NTV, reported that as many as 122 people
died of shock or committed suicide upon hearing the news of Reddy's
death, many of whom were young supporters or those who benefited from
his social welfare schemes. This was not, however, independently
confirmed.
Finance Minister Konijeti Rosaiah was sworn in as Chief Minister following Reddy's death.
Six months after his death, Reddy's son Jagan began a condolence tour (Odarpu Yatra)
to meet the families of those who either allegedly committed suicide or
died of shock after hearing of the death of his father. The Congress
party's central leadership directed Jagan to call off the Odarpu Yatra,
but he refused. The tour was successful and established Jagan as a major
political force in state politics. He resigned from the Congress party
on 29 November 2010 and announced on 7 December 2010 from Pulivendula
that he would be starting a new party within 45 days. On 16 February the
YSR Congress Party came into existence with Jagan as its president.
Elections for the seats left vacant due to the resignations of Jagan
and Y. S. Vijayamma (Reddy's wife) were held on 8 May 2011. Jagan and
Vijayamma contested the elections on behalf of the newly formed YSR
Congress Party.
Jagan surpassed his father's 420,000 vote margin, securing 690,000
votes, or more than 65%. He earned 545,043 more votes than his nearest
rival, Health Minister D.L. Ravindra Reddy.
Telugu Desam Party (TDP) nominee M.V. Mysoora Reddy came in third with
129,000 votes. Both rivals and 39 independents forfeited their deposits.
In Pulivendula, Vijayamma secured a record 81,373 votes margin,
surpassing her husband's 68,681 vote margin in the 2009 elections. Her
nearest Congress rival and brother-in-law Y.S. Vivekananda Reddy
earned just a little more than 28,000 votes. TDP candidate M.
Ravindranath Reddy, with 12,000 votes, came in a distant third. The
nominees of these parties and 22 independents could not retain their
deposits.
The victory is seen as a personal triumph for the 37-year-old Jagan,
who termed the election "a battle between Congress president Sonia
Gandhi and self-respect of the people of Kadapa".
Honour
On 8 July 2010, the Government of Andhra Pradesh renamed the Kadapa district as YSR district in honour of Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, who was a native of that district.
