Ysrs Favourite Ips Officer Retires Quietly

Senior IPS officer Madireddy Pratap, who was once considered the most trusted lieutenant and favourite officer of former united Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR), is set to quietly retire from service in a couple of days upon attaining the age of superannuation.

A 1991-batch IPS officer, Pratap was once a frontrunner for the post of Director General of Police (DGP) in the Andhra Pradesh cadre.

However, he could not make it to the top, largely because of his perceived proximity to the YSR family.

A native of Narasaraopet, Pratap will retire on June 30 as Chairman of the Andhra Pradesh Road Safety Authority, holding the rank of Additional Director General of Police (ADGP).

After YSR’s son and YSR Congress Party president Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy came to power, Pratap attempted to return to the limelight.

In January 2020, Jagan appointed him as the Vice-Chairman and Managing Director (VC & MD) of the Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC), one of the most important positions in the corporation.

He played a key role in the merger of APSRTC with the state government and the creation of the Public Transport Department.

However, his alleged over-interference in the functioning of the transport department reportedly upset Jagan. Within seven months, he was transferred and posted as Additional DGP, APSP Battalions.

Soon after his transfer, Pratap went to the residence of Jagan’s mother, Y. S. Vijayamma, to seek her blessings. He later disclosed this during a press conference.

He told reporters that the transfer had come as a surprise. Claiming that he had worked sincerely to improve public transport in the state, he said:

“Now you decide whether I have done a good job. Some people have questioned my integrity. That is very upsetting.”

Although Pratap did not directly criticise the Jagan Mohan Reddy-led government, he made it clear that he shared a close relationship with YSR and his family.

He also claimed that although the CBI had questioned several officers who worked in the Chief Minister’s Office during the investigation into Jagan’s disproportionate assets case, it had never touched him because he had remained an honest and sincere officer.

Reportedly upset with Pratap’s comments at the press conference, the Jagan government transferred him once again and directed him to report to the General Administration Department (GAD). He was not given any posting thereafter and was even served with a show-cause notice on disciplinary grounds.

After N. Chandrababu Naidu returned to power, Pratap attempted to re-enter the mainstream police administration. He was appointed Chairman of the Andhra Pradesh Road Safety Authority, the post from which he is now retiring.

On Friday, he visited his native place, Narasaraopet, where he paid an emotional tribute to the teachers who shaped his life by personally felicitating them and seeking their blessings.

Reflecting on his career, Pratap said his decades-long service had given him immense professional satisfaction.

He also noted that he had held several important assignments during the tenures of both YSR and N. Chandrababu Naidu.

He said he had played a key role in the establishment of the Sri City Special Economic Zone and credited Chandrababu Naidu with pioneering Hyderabad’s emergence as a major IT hub.

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