Of A Great Leader I Knew...

When I was studying in tenth standard at Rosary Convent, precisely 7 years back, I came to know of this man - Dr. YS Rajasekhara Reddy, who I fondly grew to like over the course of time through one of my bosom friend who is related to him. YSR (as he is lovingly addressed by everyone) was not even in power but was the front runner in the congress party at Hyderabad. In 2003, while TDP was in power and Mr. Naidu was content with christening Cyberabad, YSR was making a difference in the lives of the poor farmers, the oppressed and downtrodden. He was the heart beat of farmers and a visionary who could fore see that the heart of AP lies with the farmers, and he devised plans to uplift them after the spade work that he did in the form of his Padayatra. He walked about 1500 km on foot and understood their needs and requirements. He became one among them and stooped to see, hear and comprehend their concerns. And it
was certainly not an eye wash but people could see the love that he shared and he won their hearts!

In 2004, he trounced over TDP and made a clean sweep. He and his party delivered on the promises made to the people and were voted back to power in the recent 2009 elections, and YSR was thus sworn in as CM of AP for the second consecutive term. From giving free power to the farmers, to housing schemes, from selling rice at Rs 2 for the poor at a time when it was actually sold at an exorbitant Rs 32, to 3 % interest loans for women, developing irrigation, providing employment opportunities, giving away crores to students fees, pension facilities to women self help groups, health and making the famous Rajiv Gandhi 108 ambulance service effective; I must say the clichéd line - you name it! A striking aspect of this ambulance service is that, in the event of an accident, one needs to dial 108 and the ambulance will rush to the spot in 2 mins. It’s also equipped with oxygen cylinders and first aid to stabilise the victim till they reached hospital. It did save the lives of many, including that of my brother when he met with a fatal accident. He also empowered women through many of his initiatives and made Sabita Indira Reddy, the home minister for this present term - she is the first woman home minister AP has witnessed.

I remember the days when my friend and I would appeal to people we met - at tuition, in our neighborhood to vote for him and bring him to power. It was a canvassing of sorts. What fun days they were and we rejoiced when he was voted to power in 2004. For the 2009 elections, my friend was in US but the loyalties still continued. All of us who voted for him and his party did not change our minds as the decision was strongly rooted in us way back when we were teens.

So it was earth shattering for all of us to hear the news of his untimely demise in a chopper crash and kind of a jest but unfortunately it was a harsh reality that came in as a rude shock. The entire state came to a stand still. Lakhs of people turned up to pay their homage. Traffic was hauled up for hours, the police faced a challenge of stopping the crowd - there was utter chaos and commotion. None of us has expected that it would all end like this. People who couldn't go, like us were glued to the TV sets and the entertainment channels were stanched for 2 days until the funeral was over. We all wept and felt like there was a death in our families. This is the kind of love he garnered. Arbitrarily 120 people died after hearing the news of his death - many died of shock while few committed suicide. I know it just does not make sense but it was a personal loss for all of us. My friend couldn't return from US for his funeral, but her dad could make it. If she was here, I would go too.

I have only read about such leaders in my history books but he is the only benevolent leader I have seen and witnessed in recent times. I could see Christ in him, he was so Christ like in the love that he shared, in caring for the poor and needy, his simplicity (the dhoti he wore though he loved wearing western, to be nearer to the Aam Admi or the common man and be one among them) and humility. YSR - We love you and miss you!! R.I.P.