With the 'deeksha' by former Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy entering its third day on Sunday, the number of visitors to the site of his week-long hunger strike grew.
Among the first visitors to his hunger fast camp were his mother and former Pulivendula MLA, Y S Vijayalakshmi, and his wife Bharati. Besides his immediate family members, throngs of students from various engineering colleges also beelined to the Indira Park to express solidarity with the Kadapa leader.
Jaganmohan Reddy had launched his week-long deeksha on February 18th to increase the pressure on the state government to release arrears of fee reimbursement for SC/ST and minority students.
He is believed to be in good condition physically.
Ravi Prakash, a student of Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, said that he had come to the deeksha site to express solidarity with Jaganmohan Reddy. Ravi Prakash also said that this was an opportunity for him to meet the Kadapa leader as he had heard about him and seen him only through the media.
Meanwhile, news that the managements of private colleges were lending their support to Jaganmohan Reddy also filtered in.
Though officially not confirmed, the news brought smiles to the Kadapa leader's supporters who have been taking part in the deeksha.
The state government had hurriedly released Rs. 1,000 crores on the day the Deeksha began.
This sum has been seen as ‘too little, too late' by the college managements and the opposition.