Until now, they had refrained from canvassing in the opponent’s constituency, out of compulsion, but no more.
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh CM and TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu and his arch rival Opposition leader Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy have now trained their guns on each other’s Assembly constituencies—Pulivendula and Kuppam. Taking their mutual hatred to the next level, Naidu and Jagan have vowed to defeat their rivals in their home turf in the 11 April first phase elections.
Till now in Andhra Pradesh, the Chief Minister and the Opposition leader have refrained from canvassing in the opponent’s constituencies, not out of mutual regard, but out of compulsion of avoiding the ignominy of their rivals winning the election, despite their campaigning. Their election campaign tour maps were prepared skillfully skipping the opponent’s constituencies.
But now, this is not the case. Naidu has spent considerable time in Pulivendula, home town of Jagan and a stronghold of his family since 1978. Jagan Reddy as well as his late father and former Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy used to sweep not only the entire Kadapa district, but vast tracts of the Rayala Seema region, based on their strength in Pulivendula.
Though TDP rode to power first time within nine months of its formation under the leadership of late N.T. Rama Rao in 1983, it never won an election in Pulivendula. On the other hand, Pulivendula, a hotbed of violent faction politics, has become a stronghold of the YS family. Traditionally, this Assembly seat, since 1955, is held by Congress and all the elected MLAs so far belonged to the Reddy community.
Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy won from here for the first time in 1978 on Congress (I) and since then, there is no looking back to his family. He won as MLA six times between 1978 and 2009 and in between, won twice as MP from Kadapa which includes the Pulivendula Assembly segment. Since its inception in 1983, the TDP tried hard to win this seat, but failed. The YS family always got around 70% of polled votes here.
This time, Chief Minister Naidu, however, wanted to take the battle to the camp of Jagan by campaigning hard for his TDP candidate Satish Reddy, who lost thrice from here. Naidu on Tuesday visited Pulivendula and held a massive rally where he called for end of ‘Jagan’s rowdy rule’. “For the first time, I can see a determination in your eyes to defeat Jagan,” said Naidu addressing crowds from atop his van.
The Chief Minister was emboldened by the fact that his government this year has released irrigation water from the Gandikota reservoir, a long pending demand of people of Pulivendula. The water came from a diversion canal from Pattiseema lift irrigation scheme on Godavari River. Naidu was also buoyed by the fact that Jagan’s trusted supporters and Jammalamadugu MLA Adinarayana Reddy joined his TDP three years ago and became a minister in his Cabinet. Now, Reddy is contesting for the Kadapa MP seat.
Retaliating Naidu’s campaign in his home constituency Pulivendula, Jagan went to the former’s constituency Kuppam in Chittoor district on Friday and campaigned to defeat TDP there. Naidu first won on Congress (I) ticket from his home seat Chandragiri in 1978, but lost in 1983 by a TDP candidate and joined his father in law NTR’s TDP. Naidu didn’t contest 1985 elections, but won from Kuppam in 1989. Since then, he won from here six times.
However, Jagan on Friday attacked Naidu for neglecting Kuppam and fielded former IAS officer K. Chandramouli who belongs to Chittoor district and told the public that he would make the latter a Cabinet minister if he is elected from Kuppam this time.