Jagan Mohan Reddy was born on December 21, 1972, in Pulivendula village of Kadapa District, Andhra Pradesh, to former state chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy and Vijaya Lakshmi. He has a sibling - his sister Sharmila. Like his other family members, Jagan is a Protestant Christian.
After having early schooling in the Pulivendula village, Jagan was enrolled in Hyderabad Public School.
Jagan's plunge into politics came in 2004 when he took an active role in campaigning for the Congress in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections in Kadapa District. He would contest the seat himself in the 2009 elections and would be elected as a member of Parliament on a Congress ticket.
Meanwhile, his father, YS Rajasekhara Reddy, the chief minister of the state, had consolidated his position among the masses and the party top brass. Jagan's influence also grew manifold during this period and he founded Sakshi, a Telugu daily, and a television channel by the same name. He also started Bharathi Cements.
However, Jagan's political career was hit by the untimely demise of his father who was killed in a helicopter crash on September 2, 2009. Jagan thought he had the political legitimacy to step into his father's boots but the Congress high command did not share this view. Jagan's relationship with the Indian National Congress would steadily deteriorate then onwards.
Six months after his father's death, Jagan began an odarpu yatra, literally meaning condolence tour, to meet the families of those who committed suicide or suffered ill health on the news of his father's death. The Congress high command saw it as an attempt by Jagan to develop a strong public connect and directed him to call off his tour. But Jagan would not relent and carried on with his tour.
The final rift came when Jagan floated his own party, YSR Congress, and faced by-election from the Kadapa constituency. He won by 545,043 votes, the biggest margin of victory in Indian electoral history.
YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy is accused of amassing wealth disproportionate to his known sources of income during his father YSR Reddy's tenure as the Chief Minister. Jagan has come a long way since his father's death three years ago revolting against the Congress and launching his own party, but the road hasn't been easy. The CBI is now investigating the case and Jagan's arrest on Sunday is supposed to be the latest bust-up in this round of political slugfest.
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