YSRCP chief and former CM Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy was reportedly gearing up to target the state government on the occasion of Good Friday — a significant day for the Christian community. His plan was to highlight how, during his tenure, pastors and Christian religious leaders were given a monthly honorarium of ₹5,000, which he claims the current coalition government had discontinued.
Jagan had even mobilized his party leaders to launch a coordinated attack on the government for allegedly suspending the welfare scheme meant for pastors. The stage was set for a politically charged Good Friday message.
However, in a twist no one saw coming, the Chandrababu Naidu-led coalition government issued fresh orders just ahead of the holiday — reinstating the ₹5,000 monthly honorarium for pastors and Christian clergy. Not stopping there, the government also announced it would enhance the implementation of this scheme, making it more effective than before.
In a further surprise, the government declared that it would disburse the pending dues from the past 10 months — counting from the time the current government came into power. On Good Friday itself, each eligible pastor listed in the government’s beneficiary list is expected to receive a lump sum of ₹50,000. The state has sanctioned ₹30 crore towards this initiative.
This unexpected decision has effectively neutralized Jagan’s planned attack, leaving the YSRCP leadership in a fix. Leaders from the ruling coalition are now claiming that the move has left Jagan “speechless,” right when his party was attempting to build a narrative that the coalition conspired to end a welfare scheme started during the YSRCP regime.
By reviving the scheme and rolling out dues in a timely and symbolic manner, the TDP-led government seems to have outplayed Jagan’s political strategy — and done so without making a sound.
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