Suhasini’s entry is expected to electrify the Congress-led Grand Alliance which faces an uphill task in the state capital.
Late Chief Minister N.T. Rama Rao (NTR)’ granddaughter Nandamuri Suhasini is being fielded as TDP candidate from the Kukatpally Assembly constituency in Hyderabad in the Telangana elections, in a strategic decision by party president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu. Suhasini’s entry into the poll fray is expected to electrify the Congress-led Maha Kutami (Grand Alliance) which faces an uphill task in the state capital.
Suhasini, 34, is the daughter of late Nandamuri Harikrishna who died in a road accident four months ago and will be the first member of NTR’s family to enter politics in Telangana. Naidu picked her after her other brothers—Nandamuri Kalyanram and Junior NTR (half brother and popular Tollywood hero)—had refused to jump in the electoral fray.
There are more reasons for Naidu to select Suhasini for the Kukatpally seat which is predominantly a stronghold of Andhra settlers and supporters of TDP. The seat, located on the western part of Hyderabad city, is the hub of leading business houses and shopping malls and is a hub of IT and educational institutions which have pushed up steeply the real estate prices in the last two decades.
In 2014, Kukatpally elected TDP’s Madhavara Krishna Rao as MLA by around a majority of 43,000 votes, even in the midst of a Telangana wave in favour of TRS. However, Rao, along with 12 other TDP MLAs, have joined TRS. In 2009, Kukatpally elected Lok Satta leader and former IAS officer Jayaprakash Narain.
The Kukatpally constituency formed in 2008 has an electorate of around 4.7 lakh and figures among the 14 seats allotted to TDP out of the total 119 in the state. Incidentally, at least half of the TDP’s seats fall under the limits of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation. Of them, Kukatpally and Seri Lingampally (with around 5.7 lakh voters) are considered prestigious in Hyderabad city due to the number of voters.
As far as Naidu is considered, Suhasini’s fielding on TDP ticket from Kukatpally means a lot to him politically. Already, the late NTR’s family is active in Andhra politics, as Naidu (son-in-law of NTR) is the CM and his son Lokesh (grandson) is a minister, while actor Balakrishna (NTR’s son and Harikrishna’s younger brother) is an MLA from Hindupur in Anantapur district.
At the same time, another daughter of late NTR—Daggubati Purandeswari—is now in BJP and her husband Daggubati Venkateswara Rao is politically inactive, while NTR’s second wife, Lakshmi Parvati, is in YSR Congress, fighting against Naidu’s government. There is a feeling among TDP sections that Harikrishna, a former minister and former MP, was sidelined within TDP before he died.
Both the sons of Harikrishna—Kalyanram (from first wife) and Junior NTR (from second wife)—are in Tollywood as actors and the latter is a big hero with mass following in both Andhra and Telangana. Till recently, there was some gap between Balakrishna and Junior NTR as each avoided the other on public stages, but Harikrishna’s sudden death bridged the gap and they came
together.
Naidu wanted to show that all that the majority members of late NTR family were with him and he badly needs the open support of both Balakrishna and Junior NTR to his party during the general elections next summer. Fielding Harikrishna’s daughter as TDP’s MLA candidate is one sure way of uniting the entire family, minus Purandeswari and Lakshmi Parvati, behind TDP.
This way, Naidu also wants to bring gravitas to the Maha Kutami, which is in trouble in the Hyderabad city limits, thanks to delay in sorting out seat adjustments and beginning its campaign. Naidu wanted to field Suhasini so that she can secure the support of not only NTR fans and TDP supporters, but also the financially strong Kamma community to which she belongs.
However, this is not without some hiccups. TDP politburo member and former minister E. Peddi Reddy and senior leader Mandadi Srinivas, who are in the race for the Kukatpally ticket, have voiced their dissent over fielding of Suhasini. Though neither of them may leave the party, surely their followers who have begun campaigning might leave the poll scene, thus affecting Suhasini’s prospects.
Naidu is likely to campaign for Suhasini in a road-show along with Congress president Rahul Gandhi by the month end. There are hints that actors Balakrishna, Kalyanram and Junior NTR, too, will campaign for her.