Hyderabad, April 16: From just ` 9.18 lakh in 2004 to ` 77 crore in 2009 to ` 365 crore in 2011 — it is almost a rags- to-‘ richest’ story of Jaganmohan Reddy, former Kadapa MP and YSR Congress president.
Yes, the son of former Andhra Pradesh CM, the late Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, will be the richest parliamentarian in India if he gets elected to the Lok Sabha in the bypoll from the state’s Kadapa constituency.
On Friday, Jagan declared to the Election Commission of India that he held movable and immovable assets worth ` 365 crore, besides another ` 41.33 crore in the name of his wife. He also declared he did not own a vehicle.
He submitted an affidavit to this effect to the returning officer, Kadapa, along with his nominations papers for the seat, the by- poll for which will be held on May 8.
In the current Lok Sabha, Telugu Desam Parliamentary Party ( TDPP) leader and Khammam MP Nama Nageshwara Rao is the richest MP with assets worth ` 173 crore, according to his affidavit filed during the 2009 elections.
Interestingly, while entering the electoral battle for the first time in April 2009, Jagan had declared that he possessed assets worth ` 77.40 crore, including ` 21 crore as part of his share in the ancestral property, consisting of agricultural and non- agricultural land at Idupulapaya and Kadapa and houses in Hyderabad.
This means Jagan’s wealth has grown five- fold in just two years.
And according to the Income Tax returns filed by his father Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy before the 2004 elections ( when he was yet to enter politics), the assets in the name of Jagan were just ` 9.18 lakh.
The total value of family assets declared by YSR was just ` 50 lakh.
During 2008- 09, Jagan paid ` 2.92 lakh tax for the entire financial year, but in the first six months of financial year 2010- 11, he paid ` 6.6 crore advance tax, projecting a tax outgo of at least ` 22 crore.
“ Going by the value of the shares held by Jagan, the value of his assets runs into several thousand crores,” TDP legislator and spokesman Varla Ramaiah said.
The Congress’s candidate for the Kadapa seat, Ravindra Reddy, alleged that Jagan had made a false declaration before the Election Commission. He told the media that Jagan’s palatial bungalow on the outskirts of Bangalore itself cost ` 400 crore.
Built on 31 acres of land, the bungalow has ultra- modern facilities such as a helipad, fountains, and servant quarters. The building has the highest level of private security which works in three shifts of 200 armed guards each.
Jagan is also said to be constructing a similar bungalow on a one- acre plot in the posh Jubilee Hills area of Hyderabad.
Ravindra has demanded that Jagan explain how his assets grew from ` 9.18 lakh in 2004 to over ` 365 crore in 2011, assuming that the figure furnished by him was correct.
“ These polls are a battle between integrity and corruption.
If Jagan can amass so much wealth in six years, one can imagine how much he will make if he comes to power. He will sell off the entire state,” Ravindra alleged.
Jagan, who is fighting to retain the seat he had resigned in December to float his own regional party, arrived at the office of the returning officer to file his nomination papers with a massive procession. He also first paid tribute to his late father and was accompanied by the MLAs Konda Surekha and K. Reddy, and actress- turned- politician Roja.
Jagan’s mother and former MLA Vijayalakshmi will file her nomination papers for the Pulivendula assembly seat on April 16.
WEALTHIEST RIGHT NOW
TDP leader Nama Nageshwara Rao is the richest MP with assets worth ` 173 crore, Election Commission records say. He owns the Madhucon Group of companies, the offices of which are spread across India — in Chennai, Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad as well as in Khammam, his constituency.
The group has undertaken infrastructure projects relating to irrigation and highways worth ` 10,000 crore in Andhra Pradesh and elsewhere, and also has projects abroad. Rao owns granite units near Bellary in Karnataka and sugar factories in Khammam.
Courtesy: Mail Today