Adilabad: It is a strange way to show your support for a political leader, but Bejjanki Anilkumar, 45, of Adilabad town had taken a vow not to wear any footwear until Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy became Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. After 10 years, the poor man can finally wear chappals on his feet with Mr Reddy’s victory in AP.
Mr Anil Kumar has been walking barefoot even under the scorching sun with temperatures hitting 47 degrees Celsius in Adilabad. He stopped wearing chappals in September 2009 and went on a padayatra of 160 km to Basar temple to seek the blessings of goddess Saras-wati in putting Mr Reddy in CM’s chair. He said he would wear chappals soon after Mr Reddy takes oath as Chief Minister in Vijayawada on May 30.
As the district president of the NSUI Mr Kumar was associated with the late Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy and later supported his son Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.
He has even held a deeksha and launched a signature campaign demanding that the Congress high command select Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy as Chief Minister of the united Andhra Pradesh after the sudden demise of the latter’s father.
Anil Kumar has been a member of the YSRC from the time it was launched in 2012 and is now state general secretary of the party in Telangana. He worked hard as party in-charge for the candidate from the Noojiveedu assembly constituency in Krishna district in the recent assembly elections in AP. He also took part in the marathon padayatra undertaken by Mr Reddy.
Mr Kumar told this reporter that he had faced a lot of criticism from people and party workers and leaders of the Congress party and even the YSRCP for not going barefoot for 10 years.
'Now I am happy that the day has come and my dream has come true with my leader Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy becoming Chief Minister, though it was a long wait," says the Jagan devotee.
