Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: Telangana Rashtra Samiti appears all set to sweep the by-elections in the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh as trends in 12 constituencies indicate just 48 hours ahead of the polling date.
Ten out of 12 is likely to be the separatist party’s score with the ruling Congress and the TRS having a 50-50 chance in two segments.
It’s only the “Telangana sentiment” that gives TRS the edge in the by-election battle. The development mantra, coupled with the claim that it’s the Congress alone that could ultimately deliver statehood for Telangana, seem to have not cut any ice as the ruling party finds itself in a hopeless position.
A senior Congress leader like Rajya Sabha member V Hanumantha Rao observed: “The (Telangana) sentiment is so strong that nothing else will work.”
The fight over Babhli issue has done no good to the principal opposition Telugu Desam Party’s electoral prospects as it will have to be content with either the second place or the third in many constituencies.
By-elections will be held to the 12 constituencies on July 27 and counting of votes will take place on 30th. Since more than 64 candidates are in fray, ballot papers are being used in five Assembly segments Yellareddy, Korutla, Siricilla, Huzurabad and Warangal West. Electronic Voting Machines will be used in the remaining seven segments. In all 435 candidates are in the fray in all the 12 segments.
All eyes, however, are on the Nizamabad Urban Assembly segment where Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president Dharmapuri Srinivas is desperately seeking a win over his Bharatiya Janata Party rival Y Lakshminarayana.
Having tasted a bitter defeat in the 2009 general elections, Srinivas is using all the tricks to win the by-election. “I will get to occupy the highest position (read Chief Minister) in the state politics if elected as an MLA. Also, I will get your dream of a separate Telangana state come true if elected,” Srinivas has been repeatedly claiming during his campaign. In fact, this has been Srinivas’ theme song in the by-poll campaign.
Nizamabad Urban segment has a large chunk of Muslim voters who stayed away from polling in 2009. This resulted in Srinivas’ defeat then as the BJP candidate Lakshminarayana romped home with a comfortable majority of 11,015 votes. This time, however, Srinivas has held a series of meetings with various communities, including Muslims, pleading with them to elect him to the Legislature so that he could win back a lost chance (of becoming the Chief Minister). Srinivas pegged all his hopes on Muslim votes, numbering about 75,000, to realize his dreams.
The BJP candidate is banking on the Telangana sentiment and the “sympathy” factor over his resignation for the statehood cause in February. The TDP is nowhere in contest in this segment.
The TRS is hell bent on wrecking the PCC chief’s victory chances in Nizamabad Urban as much as the Congress is seeking to defeat TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao’s son K T Rama Rao in Siricilla constituency. Rama Rao scraped through a bare margin of 171 votes in 2009 in a multi-cornered contest.
It was a TRS rebel candidate K K Mahender Reddy who gave Rama Rao a run for his money. Now, Mahender is the Congress candidate in Siricilla but the political scene underwent a lot of change in the last one year.
Rama Rao, a rank “outsider” in Siricilla in 2009, built his base since his election for the first time as an MLA, edging out Mahender Reddy. The Telangana sentiment is the main plank on which the TRS nominee is seeking re-election this time.
KCR’s nephew T Harish Rao is one candidate who faces no real contest in the Siddipet constituency. Everyone is betting only on the majority with which Harish will win the seat in the by-election, having won the 2009 general election with a margin of 64,677 votes.
While the TDP can hope to secure the second place, with actor Babu Mohan in the fray, the Congress is desperately fighting to win at least the security deposit that it had to forego in the last two elections.
The Congress fielded three former ministers Md Ali Shabbir, G Vinod and J Ratnakar Rao from Yellareddy, Chennur (SC) and Korutla constituencies. All of them having been seeking votes claiming they would get back into the state Cabinet, if elected, and develop the respective constituencies. All three, however, are facing rough weather in these segments like in 2009 when they were trounced comprehensively.
Former MP Indrakaran Reddy of Congress is giving a semblance of fight to his TRS rival Kaveti Sammaiah in Sirpur constituency. But the internal wrangling in the Congress may mar his prospects. Other aspirants for Sirpur seat like Koneru Konappa and Premsagar Rao are said to be working against Indrakaran. However, Indrakaran succeeded to win-over Konappa and secure his support but Premsagar Rao is said to have not fallen in line. Indrakaran also has been going round with the claim that he would become a minister if elected to the Assembly.
In Warangal West Assembly constituency as well, the Congress is locked in an intense fight with the TRS. Congress’ K Dayasagar Rao has a strong base in the segment and the sympathy that he lost the 2009 polls.
TRS’ D Vinay Bhaskar, who won with a margin of over 6,600 votes against Dayasagar last time, is banking on the Telangana sentiment. Former MLA Vem Narender Reddy of the TDP is lagging behind the two main contenders in this segment.
The fight for Huzurabad seat in Karimnagar district looks interesting as the three main candidates E Rajender (TRS), M Damodar Reddy (TDP) and V Krishnamohan Rao (Congress) are mighty. Apart from the sentiment factor, his good relations with the local people should stand Rajender in good stead. The TDP’s strong cadre base in Huzurabad should help Damodar Reddy put up a good fight. The Congress has deployed senior leaders like Karimnagar MP Ponnam Prabhakar and Chief Whip Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka to ensure Krishnamohan Rao’s success.
The Vemulawada seat in Karimnagar district was won by Chennamaneni Ramesh of TDP in 2009. Ramesh, however, switched sides to the TRS after he quit the Assembly in February this year on the statehood issue. The large chunk of voters belonging to his Velama community and the support of BJP will be the additional advantages working in Ramesh’s favour apart from the Telangana sentiment and the sympathy over his resignation. Ramesh is the nephew of former Union Minister Ch Vidyasagar Rao of BJP.
In Dharmapuri and Mancherial too the TRS may find the going smooth though the TDP is giving some fight in Mancherial.
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