Is YSRCP treading a tough road?

The Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP), led by its president and former Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, is celebrating its 15th formation day across the State on Thursday (March 12, 2026). Decimated from holding 151 seats in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly to just 11 in the 2024 Assembly elections, the YSRCP now appears to be fighting its way back to relevance as the leading Opposition force. However, the road ahead looks tough and riddled with numerous political potholes.

Following the death of the then Congress Chief Minister of united Andhra Pradesh, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR), Mr. Jagan’s father, in a helicopter crash in September 2009, the young MP sought the Congress high command’s support to make him Chief Minister. The request was declined and Konijeti Rosaiah was appointed Chief Minister.

Mr. Jagan later sought permission to undertake the ‘Odarpu Yatra’ (condolence tour) to meet and console the followers of YSR who had reportedly died or were deeply affected after the former Chief Minister’s demise. However, this too was denied by the party leadership.

An upset Mr. Jagan resigned from the Congress and launched the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party on March 12, 2011. He went ahead with the Odarpu Yatra, which helped him garner significant public support.

His first major political impact came during the 2012 Andhra Pradesh by-elections, in which the YSRCP won 16 of the 25 seats that had fallen vacant after several Congress leaders defected to the new party.

The YSRCP, led by Mr. Jagan, contested the 2014 Assembly elections, a year after Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated and Telangana was carved out of the erstwhile State. Though N. Chandrababu Naidu returned to power as Chief Minister riding the NDA wave, the YSRCP emerged as a formidable challenger, winning 67 of the 175 seats in the newly formed residual Andhra Pradesh.

However, the real turning point for the YSRCP came in the 2019 elections, when the party secured a landslide victory by winning 151 out of 175 Assembly seats, enabling Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy to become Chief Minister.

Fallout

In the subsequent Assembly elections in 2024, the political tide turned dramatically. Despite having enjoyed an overwhelming mandate earlier, the party was reduced to just 11 seats — far short of the 18 required to claim the status of the Opposition in the Assembly.

The YSRCP was routed by Mr. Naidu and his NDA allies — the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Jana Sena Party led by actor-turned-politician Pawan Kalyan.

Several factors are believed to have contributed to the party’s defeat. According to political analysts, Mr. Jagan’s perceived inaccessibility to party workers and MLAs after coming to power is said to have weakened morale at the grassroots level.

Another factor that reportedly affected both Mr. Jagan and the party was his public feud with his sister and mother, which dented his personal image. It must be remembered that his sister Y. S. Sharmila, now the AP Congress Committee chief, and his mother Y. S. Vijayamma played a significant role in building the YSRCP, particularly when Mr. Jagan was lodged in Chanchalguda jail for over 15 months in connection with cases being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate.

The alleged murder of his uncle Y. S. Vivekananda Reddy and the political controversy surrounding it, the reported liquor scam, and the arrest of Mr. Naidu a few months before the elections also became major issues in the run-up to the polls. A seasoned Mr. Naidu left no stone unturned in capitalising on these developments and secured a decisive victory.

At present, the road ahead for the YSRCP appears uncertain, as the party is struggling to find strong issues to mount an effective campaign against the ruling dispensation. Learning from past experiences, Mr. Naidu and his NDA allies seem to be leaving little room for the YSRCP to regain political ground for now.

The party is not only facing steady defections but is also entangled in controversies such as the TTD ghee adulteration issue and the Andhra Pradesh liquor scam. The only issue that could potentially anchor a fightback — the alleged privatisation of medical colleges — has not gathered sufficient momentum. Meanwhile, the State government’s detailed and timely responses on the matter appear to be blunting the Opposition’s criticism.

Though Mr. Jagan is known for his resilience, only time will tell whether he can step out of the towering legacy of his father, YSR, and carry the party forward on his own shoulders. For now, after two years of governance, Mr. Naidu appears firmly in command with the support of his allies, focusing on advancing the Amaravati capital project while pushing ahead with welfare programmes and investment initiatives.

Published – March 12, 2026 02:15 pm IST