Notwithstanding the CBI cases and regular attacks by Congress leaders over his money laundering, Kadapa MP and YSR Congress president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy still enjoys a mammoth public following. This was evident in his recent visit to Nellore, considered to be a bastion of Anam brothers of the Congress party.

Jagan Mohan Reddy received a rousing reception when he came here to attend the marriage of the daughter of party district convener and former ZP chairman Kakani Govardhan Reddy on Friday. The public response was like his last trip to Nellore about 16 months ago when he came to console the families of victims who had committed suicide after Dr YSR’s death. Incidentally he was in the Congress when he extensively toured the district then.

Nearly a 2,000-strong crowd turned up at the railway station when he arrived by Narayanadri Express from Guntur during the early hours of Friday at around 3 am. They mobbed him when he came to the venue and his bodyguards had a tough time in making way for him. The situation was no different at the Mekapati brothers’ guest house where Jagan stayed. Partymen from all parts of the district as well as locals gathered before the guest house in large numbers to have a glimpse of Jagan. After a brief interaction with party leaders, he formally inaugurated a hospital named after his father by party leader Dr Ch. Balachannaiah on Podalakur Road.

People were seen waiting to see him in every village all along the route where he went to unveil statues of his father at Epinapi and Siddavaram in Rapur mandal. Before leaving for Kadapa district, he addressed a gathering at Siddavaram. He came down heavily on state government for their failure on various fronts. He blamed government for not finding a solution for the ongoing strike of junior doctors. He alleged that state government was planning to discontinue welfare schemes introduced by his father, referring to 104 and 108 services.

Nellore MP Mekapati Rajamohan Reddy, his son Goutham Reddy, Udayagiri legislator Mekapati Chandrasekhar Reddy, former Kovur legislator Nallapareddy Prasannakumar Reddy, party leaders Anam Venkataramana Reddy, Anilkumar Yadav and Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy were present among others.