A day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah slammed the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP Government in Andhra Pradesh with allegations of corruption, the state chief minister on Monday said the BJP may not be with him, but he enjoys the support of the people of the state.

Party leaders allege that the BJP is resorting to belittle the YSRCP as it realized that its polarization tactics won’t work in the state.

Reddy was in the Palnadu district on Monday distributing school kits among the students when he decided to respond to the criticism from BJP’s top leaders like Amit Shah and JP Nadda. Naming some of the media organisations which are allegedly against him and Pawan Kalyan Reddy, he said, “An adopted son (Pawan Kalyan) may not stand by. BJP may not support your Jagan anna. Your Jagan anna does not trust them. He believed only in God’s grace and your blessings.”

Anticipating a tie up between old allies TDP and BJP along with Jana Sena, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has been projecting himself as a crusader fighting lonely battle with opponents ganged up against him from all fronts.

While the chief minister’s criticism was mild, his trusted lieutenant in New Delhi, MP Vijayasai Reddy, was more aggressive. He accused the BJP of finding it difficult to campaign due to unfulfilled promises by the Centre and hence resorting to badmouthing the YSRCP government.

“BJP in AP is finding it difficult to campaign as wherever they go people are asking about the status of special category status, privatization of Vizag Steel Plant, South Coast Railway Zone and AP Reorganisation Act promises. Sadly for BJP, polarisation does not work in AP.”

The YSRCP’s Twitter handle pointed out that the YSRCP Government has spent more funds on subsidies than that given by the Centre to the state.

“During these four years of Chief Minister YS Jagan’s rule, we have directly deposited Rs 2.10 lakh crore in the people’s accounts in the form of various welfare schemes without any trace of corruption. In any state where your NDA government is in power, has this level of good happened to the people? But what about the special status given to AP? What about allotment of captive mines for Visakha Steel. Answer these first,” the YSRCP tweeted in response to a BJP tweet alleging the money sent by the Modi Government for the development of Andhra Pradesh has been looted by the cadre of Jagan Mohan Reddy. Shah had said the Centre had granted Rs 2.30 lakh crore to the state.

Although the TDP was happy with Shah’s savage criticism of the YSRCP regime, it was left hanging since the top BJP leadership made no remarks about an alliance with TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu.