Congress calm despite Jagan storm

HYDERABAD: Keeping their word, 29 legislators owing allegiance to YSR Congress chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy resigned from the Assembly on Monday but the ruling Congress put up a brave face saying it would not affect the stability of the Kiran Kumar Reddy government.Of the MLAs who resigned, 26 belong to the Congress, two to the Telugu Desam and one to the Praja Rajyam. However, three of the Congress legislators -- Jayasudha, Konda Surekha and K Satyavathi -- did not submit fresh letters of resignation along with the others claiming the Speaker should accept the ones they had already given demanding a separate Telangana. This, notwithstanding the fact that the Speaker has already rejected the more than 100 resignations submitted to him on the T issue.Sources indicated that the Congress is in a different mood and it is more than likely that the resignations of Jagan loyalists might be accepted sooner than later.The Congress leadership seems to be of the view that it would be better to settle the issue rather than face criticism from Jagan campers within the party on a day-to-day basis. The thinking is that given the current public mood against corruption across the country, it would not be easy for the Jagan loyalists to get public mandate again. Besides, the Congress does not expect the Kadapa byelection story to repeat elsewhere.The other factor weighing on the Congress mind is that the numbers game is still in its favour despite the resignations. Moreover, once the resignations are accepted, the effective strength of the House would come down and the Kiran Kumar Reddy government can comfortably prove that it has more than the requisite 50 per cent majority.For the record, Speaker Nadendla Manohar, who is out of station, said he would consult experts and also speak to the MLAs individually before taking a decision on the resignations.If the Jagan camp has thought of resignations as a counter-offensive to embarrass Kiran Kumar Reddy in the wake of the CBI raids on the YSR Congress chief, the Congress strategy appears to be that their acceptance would send a sort of shock to those who deserted the party. Though they have given the resignations, quite a few among the Jagan campers appear to have done so hoping that they would not be accepted in any case.This also seems to be the reason why the three Telangana legislators of Jagan group have not given fresh letters as they are unsure of re-election given the altogether different public mood in this part of the state where statehood agitation is at its peak.