In a surprising decision, YSR Congress party president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy has decided against attending the 30th meeting of the Southern Zonal Council to be held at Thiruvananthapuram on September 3.
The meeting would be chaired by Union home minister Amit Shah and would discuss various issues including boundary disputes, security, infrastructure, transport, industries, water, forests and environment, housing, education, food security, etc.
In fact, on Monday, Jagan held a meeting of senior officials to finalise the agenda points to be discussed at the Southern Zonal Council meeting. There also he did not indicate that he won’t be attending the meeting.
But on Tuesday, the chief minister decided against it on the ground that he would be busy with official programmes in Kadapa between September 1 and 3. Instead of Jagan, state finance minister Buggana Rajendranath Reddy along with other officials would go to Thiruvananthapuram.
Though it is a good opportunity for Jagan to have a one-on-one meeting with Amit Shah to thrash out any major political issues, he decided to skip it, raising many an eyebrow.
One can understand Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s decision to avoid the meeting because of his confrontation with the Centre, but why Jagan has chosen to skip it is a mystery.
There is a talk that the YSRCP chief has not taken kindly the meeting of Amit Shah with Eenadu group chairman Ch Ramoji Rao at the latter’s bungalow in Ramoji Film City recently. He is also upset with Shah meeting Junior NTR at Hotel Novotel in Hyderabad.
Apparently, Jagan is of the view that the BJP national leadership is trying to get closer to his political rivals and Shah is taking the initiative in this regard. But so far, the chief minister is playing his cards close to his chest.