2010: Annus Horribilis in AP's political history

Desaraju Surya
HYDERABAD: Year 2010 has been an Annus Horribilis in the political history of Andhra Pradesh.
The political chaos that actually began towards the end of year 2009 ran through the whole of 2010 and, in fact, might continue to prevail even in 2011.
While the prime reason for this seemingly prolonging turbulence is the demand for and against the bifurcation of the state, the internal strife in the ruling Congress party has also been a large contributing factor.
The agitations for and against the division of Andhra Pradesh, which began in December 2009 and spilled into the first half of 2010, not only paralysed the state administration but also left the main
political parties in shambles.
The happenings within the Congress also left AP in a state of political uncertainty through the year as the ruling party failed in many ways than one in managing its own affairs. Governance, as a
result, became the biggest casualty, leaving common citizens disillusioned.
Disarray will only be a mild word to describe the state of Congress as it was forced to replace a “non-effective” Chief Minister (K Rosaiah) on one hand and contend with the virtual rebellion caused by former MP from Kadapa Y S Jaganmohan Reddy on the other.
The current Chief Minister Nallari Kiran Kumar Reddy is virtually counting his days at the helm of affairs as Jagan is waiting for the opportune moment to dislodge the state government, though for public consumption he has promised to let it continue till 2014.
Son of former Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, Jagan’s first rebellious act was embarking on the Odarpu Yatra for consoling families of persons who died of shock or committed suicide following
his father’s death.
Jagan, in fact, used the controversial yatra for a show of strength and building a base for himself across the state, particularly in the Andhra-Rayalaseema regions. The huge response to his road shows proved that Jagan not only succeeded in his plans but also compounded the woes of the beleaguered Congress.
By already attracting close to 30 MLAs, half-a-dozen MLCs and about five Lok Sabha MPs of the Congress to his side, upon his exit from the party, Jagan has already sounded the warning bell for the Kiran Kumar government.
Come 2011, Jagan will launch his own political outfit with the main objective of decimating the Congress, which he quit in December. This may actually see many “fence-sitters” in the Congress jump on to his bandwagon, endangering the survival of the Kiran government.
Jagan apart, the Congress also faces uncertainty from within as the Telangana protagonists in the party too have openly declared a war if statehood is not granted for their region.
The cracks along the regional lines in the Congress that began appearing in December 2009 only widened in 2010 as the high command remained apathetic to the developments in the party.
The principal opposition Telugu Desam Party is not in a comfortable position either. The TDP too is split on regional lines with the Telangana leaders favouring a separate state while those from
Andhra-Rayalaseema opposing it.
TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu is unable to take a clear stand on the state division issue and is closely monitoring the happenings in the Congress so that he could devise his party’s strategy.
Though initially there was hope in the TDP circles about the party’s prospects brightening in the wake of Jagan’s exit from the Congress, the complete rout it faced in the by-elections in July in Telangana
has indeed become a cause for concern. With the TDP still vacillating over its stand on the statehood issue, there is scant hope of revival in its fortunes in the Telangana region that was always considered its citadel.
The separatist Telangana Rashtra Samiti, on the other hand, is riding high on the “sentiment” wave following its spectacular showing in the by-elections where it won all the 11 seats it contested.
In fact, 2010 saw the TRS fighting a do-or-die battle to achieve its sole objective – securing statehood for Telangana. It has taken the battle, with the help of other separatist forces, almost to a decisive
stage this year, so much so that the political future of Andhra Pradesh now hinges on the outcome of this battle.
Year 2010 could well be a forgettable one for actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi as his two-year-old Praja Rajyam Party headed nowhere.

By vouching for a united state, Chiranjeevi antagonised people of Telangana, so much so that his party has been reduced to nothing in the region. After more than 10 months, however, he started attracting some of his fans from Telangana back to his fold for re-building the PRP. But the PRP also seems to be stuck in an existential dilemma. It has done no good for itself by hob-nobbing with the ruling Congress and in fact lost its credibility by showing a desperation to join the government. Chiranjeevi’s proposed re-entry into the tinsel world fuelled speculation that he might indeed merge his outfit with the Congress sooner of later.

The Bharatiya Janata Party’s future literally hangs in the balance in AP. As things stand, the national party’s only hope lies in the creation of Telangana state where it could at least try to regain past glory, being an aggressive supporter of the statehood demand. At the same time, the pro-Telangana stand could prove to be its nemesis in Andhra-Rayalaseema regions where it once enjoyed considerable clout.

As the year 2010 draws to a close, Telangana indeed holds the key to the fortunes of the two main political parties – Congress and TDP – in the state. But each will remain strong only in any one of the two regions in any eventuality. Of course, Jagan is waiting in the wings to play spoilsport.

“What if!” is a puzzle that all the parties are now busy trying to crack, marching into Year 2011.

What's in store for the Telugus?

Desaraju Surya

Hyderabad: Every Telugu, residing not just in Andhra Pradesh but in any other part of the globe, is waiting with bated breath for the dusk of December 31. Not to bid adieu to Year 2010 or welcome 2011, but to know whether their state will remain Andhra Pradesh or get divided into Telangana and Andhra or anything else. December 31 is the “D-day” when the five-member Justice Srikrishna Committee, appointed by the Government of India on February 3 this year for consultations on the situation in Andhra Pradesh, submits its report after an extensive field work in the wake of the demand for and against the bifurcation of the state. Though the recommendations of the Committee are unlikely to be publicised the same day, every citizen of this state has come to see it as a landmark day that defines their future.

The Committee was appointed in the backdrop of the agitation for and against the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, when the demand for creation of a separate Telangana state reached a feverish pitch in late 2009. The Justice Srikrishna Committee was asked to examine, among other things, the situation in Andhra Pradesh with reference to the demand for a separate state of Telangana as well as the demand for maintaining the present status of a united Andhra Pradesh; to review the developments in the state since its formation and their impact on the progress and development of the different regions of the state; to identify the key issues that must be addressed by consulting all sections of the society, especially the political parties and seek from the political parties and other organisations a range of solutions that would resolve the present difficult situation and promote the welfare of all sections of the people. It was also asked to identify the “optimal solutions” for this purpose and recommend a plan of action and a road map.

The last months of year 2009 saw turbulence caused primarily by separatists seeking Telangana state while early 2010 witnessed a spontaneous movement by people of Andhra and Rayalaseema regions opposing the state’s division. This led to political disorder and public unrest in the state after the Congress’ flip-flop on “initiating the process for creation of Telangana.” Order was restored in the state to an extent only after the Srikrishna Committee was appointed to look into the statehood demand, a move seen as the Congress’ desperate gambit to undo the damage caused by its mishandling of the whole issue.

Though initially every political party reacted with scepticism to the Committee’s constitution, the common people welcomed it with the hope that it will come out with an everlasting solution to the contentious statehood issue. All political parties, barring the Bharatiya Janata Party, subsequently presented their case, for and against the division of the state, before the Committee while all other stakeholders too submitted their views on the issue. The Committee members – eminent and widely-respected in varied fields – toured almost every part of Andhra Pradesh in the last ten months, collected tonnes of data from different sources, interacted with people at the grassroots level and drafted a two-volume report. In doing so, they kept their promise of completing their task “within the set deadline.” Now, Justice Srikrishna and his four colleagues are about to submit the report to Union Home Minister P Chidambaram in New Delhi.

While holding a mirror to the past and the present of Andhra Pradesh since its formation on November 1, 1956, the Srikrishna Committee report should hold the beacon for its future as well.

Kiran Kumar Reddy left with egg on his face

Desaraju Surya

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy’s sarcastic remarks against Leader of Opposition N Chandrababu Naidu seem to be precipitating the crisis arising out of the latter’s indefinite hunger-strike that was into its sixth day today. At a time when the former Chief Minister’s health condition turned “alarming,” Kiran Kumar’s pun-laced remarks that “people have taken note of your hunger-strike” have only angered the Telugu Desam Party rank and file further and increased the determination of Chandrababu to take his struggle to its “logical conclusion.” The Chief Minister, while addressing a public meeting at Jadcherla in Mahbubnagar district, remarked: “Your attempt to be recognized as the ‘messiah of farmers’ has succeeded. People have taken note of your fast, so you can now call it off.” This left the TDP red-faced. “It is highly unbecoming of the Chief Minister to talk like that at his critical hour. It only shows how indifferent and negligent is he to the issue,” TDP politburo member and former Union minister Ummareddy Venkateswarlu said. “Our leader Chandrababu is determined to continue his indefinite hunger-strike and take it to the logical conclusion,” Ummareddy said. Two days ago, the Chief Minister remarked in New Delhi that the indefinite hunger-strike was Chandrababu’s “own headache.” Political observers here say that such remarks by Kiran Kumar emanated from his bitter personal animosity towards Chandrababu. Even some of his Cabinet colleagues admitted that Kiran’s comments showed him in poor light and compounded the current situation. “He (Kiran) should be diplomatic enough at least while making such remarks in the public. He can’t be so blunt. Otherwise, it exposes the personal grudge he holds against Chandrababu,” a senior minister pointed out. In fact, the Chief Minister spoke in a curt manner on resolving the indefinite fast issue when CPI state secretary K Narayana met and sought his intervention. “We have already discussed the issue in the Assembly and announced a relief package. We can’t do anything more on this,” Narayana quoted Kiran as telling him. Even Praja Rajyam Party president K Chiranjeevi’s phone call to the Chief Minister for making the TDP chief end his fast did not yield any response from Kiran.

Jagan's actual target is Rahul Gandhi

Desaraju Surya

Hyderabad: His late father Y S Rajasekhara Reddy’s dream
was to make Rahul Gandhi the Prime Minister of India in 2014 but Y S
Jaganmohan Reddy’s aim now is to ensure that the All India Congress
Committee general secretary doesn’t stand that chance.
Dashing Rahul Gandhi’s Prime Ministerial dreams appears to be the
larger agenda behind Jagan’s move to launch a political party next
month, his close followers say.
“Becoming Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister is now secondary for Jagan.
His prime target is Rahul Gandhi. The objective is to win considerable
number of Lok Sabha seats in the state and dent the Congress’
aspirations of making Rahul the Prime Minister,” a close confidante of
Jagan said.
In this era of coalition governments, Jagan understands the numbers
game well and is accordingly planning his moves.
Jagan hopes to rally the anti-Congress parties at the national level
and emerge as a potent force so as to dictate terms to the party that
left him “humiliated.”
If claims of his key aides and strategists are to be believed, Jagan
has already “made some friends” notably in Bihar through his “generous
contributions” during the recent Assembly elections in the state. The
ex-Congress MP already has good friends in the “Reddy brothers” (Gali
Janardhan and Karunakar) of Karnataka through whom he hopes to enlarge
his circle in the Bharatiya Janata Party as well.
In Andhra Pradesh, Jagan is reportedly in consultations with some key
leaders of the Telangana Rashtra Samiti for possible support in the
region in future by assuring the separatist leaders that he would
indeed support a separate Telangana state.
This is seen as a tacit move by Jagan to wean the TRS away from the
Congress in any eventuality.
“We are still working on various strategies. We shall start putting
them in practice after the party is formally launched probably around
Sankranti festival,” a close confidante of Jagan said.

Rebellion against Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister

Desaraju Surya

Hyderabad: The allocation of portfolios to the newly-sworn-in ministers triggered a major rebellion against Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy around midnight barely hours after he constituted his Council of Ministers.

It is turning out to be a Reddy versus backward classes battle which may plunge the week-old new government into a deep crisis even as two ministers have already sent in their resignations to the Chief Minister.

The ministers who have been left seething after the allocation of portfolios are now getting ready for a showdown with the Chief Minister at the first formal meeting of the new Cabinet.

“It (Cabinet) is not your private limited company. Do you want the Congress party to survive in Andhra Pradesh or get reduced to its 1994 status (when it won only 27 seats and could not even become the main opposition party),” a senior minister reportedly asked the Chief Minister, expressing serious displeasure over the allocation of portfolios.

The main grouse was that all the plum portfolios (revenue-earning) were allocated to ministers belonging to the Reddy community while those from the backward classes were given insignificant (non-revenue generating) portfolios.

While Reddys got as many as 14 berths in the new Cabinet, the BCs were given just about 10. When it came to allocation of portfolios, prime ones like Finance, agriculture, major irrigation, health, municipal administration and panchayat raj were given to Reddys much to the chagrin of the BC ministers.

Leading the list of dissenters were Botsa Satyanarayana, Dharmana Prasada Rao, Vatti Vasantha Kumar, Ponnala Lakshmaiah and Danam Nagender who got ready to quit their posts. Of course, a Reddy minister, Komatireddi Venkat Reddy, too has joined hands with the BC ministers, sulking over the allocation of Infrastructure and Investments portfolio.

Vatti Vasantha Kumar, who has been shifted from Rural Development to Tourism Department in the new government, was the first to send in his resignation to the Chief Minister minutes after the portfolios were allocated late in the night. In fact, Vatti also resigned from his MLA post as well.

Following in Vatti’s steps, Komatireddi Venkat Reddy too has forwarded his resignation to Kiran Kumar Reddy. Komatireddi has been given the Infrastructure and Investments Department in the new government. He was minister for Information Technology and Communications Department in the previous government.

Sensing trouble, a worried Chief Minister sent his new Finance Minister Aanam Ramanarayana Reddy to placate Vatti, at whose residence more than 10 ministers had gathered for a strategic meeting around midnight. However, Vatti remained firm on his resignation.

The Chief Minister reportedly conveyed through Aanam that the portfolios issue could be discussed at the Cabinet meeting scheduled for Thursday but the sulking ministers were in no mood to relent.

The Chief Minister’s reported contention that some of the senior ministers were given “less important” portfolios only because they were facing allegations of corruption.

“In that case why were such persons taken into the Cabinet in the first place,” a disgruntled minister fumed.

The Chief Minister’s emissary did not have an answer for this and had to make a hasty retreat, informed sources said.

Was Jagan caught between his uncles?

Desaraju Surya

Hyderabad: Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, who quit the Congress party as well as his Lok Sabha seat, was in fact caught between his two uncles – one from his late father’s side and the other from his mother’s. The alleged rift within the family was threatening to spill onto the streets when Jagan realised he had to find a quick escape route to safeguard the “family prestige.” As his uncle (father’s younger brother) Y S Vivekananda Reddy left for New Delhi reportedly to seek a berth in the Kiran Kumar Reddy government, Jagan seized the opportunity to mount an attack on the Congress high command and cry foul. He saw a “conspiracy being hatched to vertically split the family.” “Is it fair to lure my uncle Y S Vivekanada Reddy to Delhi, thereby paving way for fissures in my family,” he angrily questioned AICC president Sonia Gandhi in an open letter. The fact, however, was something else. For a few months now, Jagan was reportedly not on good terms with Vivekananda. On his part Vivekananda, a Member of the Legislative Council, too was unhappy with Jagan’s ways. “Vivekananda apparently did not like the way in which Jagan was totally being influenced by his other uncle Y V Subba Reddy (Rajasekhara Reddy’s co-brother). Subba Reddy has become Jagan’s karta, karma, kriya (be all and do all) much to Viveka’s discomfiture,” a source close to Jagan’s family said. Vivekananda is known to be a “humble, mild-mannered” man and is highly revered across Kadapa. In fact, he is held in high esteem than his elder brother (late) Rajasekhara Reddy in their hometown Pulivendula from where Vivekananda was elected to the state Assembly twice. “Jagan’s fear is that he stands no chance against his uncle any day in their home turf Pulivendula or Kadapa. Such is the stature of Vivekananda,” the source noted. On the other hand, Subba Reddy was never in public life and looked after his own business as well as YSR’s. “Subba Reddy is now Jagan’s key strategist. It is he who is driving the rebel leader,” the source pointed out. The fissures within the family were thus obvious, making Vivekananda to tread a different path.

CONGRESS BEATS Y S JAGAN, HANDS DOWN

Desaraju Surya

Hyderabad: The Congress has won, la affaire Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, and proved yet again that the organization is mightier than an individual.

The man who often cried that he was “running out of patience” had to ultimately give up and bow himself out in the face-off with the party.

The now former member of Lok Sabha from Kadapa provoked the Congress high command so much so that he wanted it to act against him so that he could go to the people and claim that “I have been punished without committing any sin.”

He waited and waited in vain, often letting it know that he was “running out of patience” as the Congress appeared in no mood to take any step that would “make him a hero.”

As the grand old party played its game with the distinction that it is famous for, Jagan was left “suffering in humiliation.”

More than 14 months have elapsed but the Congress never displayed any urgency to let Jagan realize his dream of becoming Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, even as the state saw the ascendancy of two Chief Ministers in the aftermath of Y S Rajasekhara Reddy’s tragic death in September 2009.

Jagan always thought the Chief Minister’s chair rightfully belonged to him and never shied away from claiming so. Even after the Congress denied him the opportunity, he went to the people and vowed that he would one day become the Chief Minister “come what may.”

A year-long wait made the Chief Minister’s chair look like sour grapes for the industrialist-turned-politician who primarily had more business interests to protect than any other agenda.

Majority of the MLAs who initially supported Jagan’s candidature for the Chief Minister’s post gradually backed out, in sync with the party high command’s mind, but the 20-month-old politician remained adamant.

He then started adopting defiant means to reach his goal. Every move of his, like going on the Odarpu Yatra and targeting the Congress government in the state through his own media, made his detractors in the party cry hoarse about Jagan’s belligerence.

The Congress never really bothered to take note of how Jagan became a multi-billionaire in no time despite having enough evidence to nail him.

The high command continued to give him a long rope all along. But when Sonia Gandhi herself, a Goddess to all Congressmen, was vehemently targeted along with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi, the high command probably wanted to crack the whip.

Still, it went soft on Jagan and sought to extend an olive branch in an other form – by offering a Cabinet berth to his uncle Y S Vivekananda Reddy in the Kiran Kumar Reddy government.

This was a “conspiracy against my family and myself” which Jagan could not stand. He let the Congress have the last laugh and quietly sent in his resignation to Sonia Gandhi, not directly but in the form of an “open letter.”

Jagan will now seek the blessings of his late father at his grave and try to re-invent himself as an “independent” political leader.

The "REBEL" in a fix

Desaraju Surya

Hyderabad: He may have been branded a "rebel" but 36-year-old Member of Parliament from Kadapa, Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, has now actually been reduced to a man suffering in silence in more ways than one.

While cervical spondilitis is Jagan's physical tormentor, the Congress politics has become a biggest mental block for him.

Enduring the physical pain might seem trivial, compared to the mental agony of having to remain indecisive on his future political course.

His uncle and Member of Legislative Council, Y S Vivekananda Reddy, has now rubbed salt into Jagan’s injury by offering to “patch up” the strained relationship between his nephew and the Congress high command by “expressing our regret over the episodes telecast on Sakshi television channel.”

Vivekananda’s “impulsive action” has only left Jagan more embarrassed even as his camp tried to do some damage control by announcing that their leader had done nothing wrong that warranted any “explanation” to the high command. By disowning Vivekananda’s statement, his camp desperately sought to send a message that Jagan “would never surrender” to anyone.

Now, Jagan will have to spend time at least till Wednesday waiting agonizingly to make up his mind on whether or not to continue in the Congress party, what with the constitution of the state Council of Ministers likely to happen only that day.

Jagan is anxiously awaiting the formation of the state Cabinet to assess his standing in the scheme of things in the Congress and chalk out his future path, his campers say.

Most of the 20-odd MLAs, who continue to swear by Jagan, are now busy camping in New Delhi lobbying intensely for ministerial posts. One of his close followers and former minister Pilli Subhash Chandra Bose claimed he would not join Kiran Kumar Reddy’s Cabinet after it became clear that he would face the axe for having defied the party high command, along with another former minister Balineni Srinivasa Reddy, on the Odarpu Yatra issue.

The Congress high command is also keeping Jagan on tenterhooks by being indecisive on the action, if any, it intends to take against him for targeting the party and its leadership through his media.

The nearly two-month long "Odarpu Yatra" he undertook in Prakasam and Nellore districts from September 3 had in fact taken a heavy toll on this indutrialist-turned-politician's body that he has now been advised "complete bed rest" at least for two months.

“He may resume his yatra subsequently but not in the fashion he did in the last leg covering thousands of kilometres for hours on end in the two districts. Such strenuous touring can prove dangerous for him given his current condition,” a senior doctor attending on him revealed.

This has become a worrying factor for the belligerent MP who obviously can’t go back on the promise of continuing his yatra from January next to console families whose members either died of shock or allegedly committed suicide following the death of Jagan’s father Y S Rajasekhara Reddy.

Putting off or delaying the yatra inordinately in view of his bad health will adversely affect Jagan’s ambitious political plans since he has set his eyes on the Chief Minister’s chair alone.

Given these factors, Jagan is unable to go ahead with his plans or maintain status quo and clearly looks caught in a Catch-22 situation.

YSR's pet scheme spells doom for many in AP

Desaraju Surya

Hyderabad: The dream of owning a house turned into a curse for K Ramesh (30), a daily wage earner of Venkatadripet village in Warangal district of Andhra Pradesh.

He borrowed Rs 10,000 from a micro-finance institution (MFI) and could only complete the foundation work of the house. But, as pressure mounted from the lender for repayment of the loan, a harassed Ramesh hung himself to death last week. “Clearing the weekly installments has become too much to bear for Ramesh because of the exorbitant interest rate of over 48 per cent,” his relatives say.

Actually, Ramesh obtained the loan in the name of purchasing a buffalo but instead used the money for taking up the construction of his dream house. Now, he left only a debt burden of over Rs 10,000 on his 25-year-old wife, excluding the interest component.

This was one of the sad sagas of the ongoing MFI atrocities in Andhra Pradesh.

Ramesh might have ended his life unable to overcome the pressures of borrowing (money) but there are many such people across the state still suffering the effects of a micro loan.

The much-hyped and ambitious Indiramma housing, YS Rajasekhara Reddy's pet scheme, under which the Congress government promised a permanent roof over every poor family’s head is indeed coming to the haunt the hapless “beneficiaries” as it has literally pushed them into a debt trap.

“The vulnerability created by government policies and schemes like Indiramma housing have helped the unscrupulous micro finance institutions to openly exploit the hapless poor, particularly in rural areas,” CPM politburo member and MP Brinda Karat pointed out.

“One of the reasons people borrowed money from MFIs was to complete the houses they were allotted under the Indiramma scheme. It has in fact become a double blow as on one hand they had to repay the loan obtained from a bank and on the other the MFIs on the same house,” project director of a District Rural Development Agency, which is now the nodal agency for the registration of MFIs.

While the unit cost of a Indiramma house has been fixed at Rs 55,000, the state government provided Rs 25,000 as subsidy and Rs 30,000 was arranged through banks as a loan. “The unit cost fixed by the government was never sufficient to complete the house because of the escalating prices of materials as well as labour. Hence, the beneficiaries were forced to borrow more money from other sources, including the MFIs,” the official noted.

Many cases of debt-ridden beneficiaries of Indiramma housing scheme are seeing the light now after the authorities started probing into the MFIs’ activities and also the sufferings of the borrowers. “We have reports from districts like Nalgonda, Visakhapatnam, Kurnool, Guntur, Chittoor, Khammam, Anantapur, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam where most of the Indiramma beneficiaries are caught in the MFI debt trap. We are assessing the cases and trying to help these people out by providing alternative credit at cheaper interest rate,” a top official of the Rural Development Department said.

the ghost of micro-finance institutions in AP

Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: History is repeating in Andhra Pradesh vis-à-vis the Micro-Finance Institutions (MFIs). The spectre of MFIs has come to haunt the hapless poor borrowers, particularly in the rural areas, as both the state government as well as the Centre did practically nothing in the last four years after the ghost first raised its ugly head in 2006. More than 70 persons committed suicide unable to bear the “torture” unleashed by unscrupulous MFIs in AP in 2006 while in just over a month now more than 40 people met with a similar tragic end. Official “toll” this year, however, is just 23. Be it pushing women into flesh trade, forcing them to stand in blazing sun (as punishment) for hours, humiliating them in front of other villagers or seizing ration cards and Aarogyasri health insurance cards for non-repayment of loans in time… the so-called “recovery agents” of MFIs resort to every inhuman method to intimidate the poor borrowers. “Those who could not stand this are committing suicide,” a district Collector pointed out. Same things happened in 2006 when the scale of operations of MFIs in the state was between Rs 1000 crore and Rs 1500 crore. Now, of the total Rs 30,000 crore MFIs’ outstanding in the country, Andhra Pradesh accounts for about 40 per cent. The defaults were estimated to be between one and 1.5 per cent, government sources said. It was the then Y S Rajasekhara Reddy’s government that vigorously encouraged the MFIs in the state as a means “to deliver rural credit at cheaper rates” and eventually “make every woman a lakhpathi (millionaire).” In October 2005, AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi toured Islampur in Medak district and Medchal allegedly to promote Share Microfin. A couple of years later, Rahul visited Bhongir in Nalgonda district on behalf of SKS Microfinance, promoted by Vikram Akula.
“Rahul has close links with MFIs. As a fellow MP, I am ready for a debate with him on this,” Telugu Desam Parliamentary Party leader Nama Nageswara Rao challenged even as Chief Minister K Rosaiah shot back saying the Amethi MP has “no love” for the MFIs. At the height of the MFI crisis in 2006, Rajasekhara Reddy promised to bring in legislation putting a cap on the interest rate charged by MFIs but failed. The ball was then pushed into the Centre’s court without any effect. Also, the state government did not even act on the report of the one-man committee it appointed to probe into the excesses of MFIs. The then Special Chief Secretary to government V P Jauhari, who headed the committee, had recommended strong measures to rein in the MFIs essentially to arrest an “emerging mafia” and also protect poor borrowers from its clutches. He had cautioned that there was a possibility of “other criminal elements” entering the fray since “easy money” was involved. Going by the events unfolding over the past one month, Jauhari’s fears appear to have come true. Four years have elapsed and on July 20 this year, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee announced in Hyderabad that the Central government would soon arrive at a decision on the Bill to regulate micro finance institutions. “The Bill is under examination of the government and we shall soon arrive at a decision,” he said, when questioned about the long-pending legislation that primarily is intended to place a cap on the interest rates being charged by MFIs. Still, nothing happened on the legislation front but MFIs were back to their nefarious ways. Now, the Centre appears to be in no mood to place a cap on the interest rate charged by MFIs nor put in place an effective mechanism to strictly regulate the errant money-lending firms. The Union Finance Minister's assertions on MFIs make this clear.
Since the start of this month, one after the other poor borrowers in rural parts of AP started ending their lives unable to repay the loans on which usurious rates of interest were charged. Left with no other option, the state government hurriedly promulgated an ordinance making it mandatory for MFIs to register their activities with the respective District Rural Development Agency. But it could not place a cap on the interest rate since the subject was under the Centre’s domain, a senior official of the Rural Development Department said. In fact, state Rural Development Minister Vatti Vasantha Kumar sounded the warning bell at a meeting of the State-Level Bankers’ Committee on September 28 saying: “The exorbitant rate of interest being charged by MFIs ranging from 36 to 48 per cent is not at all an encouraging trend.” His alarm stemmed from the fact that banks lent only about Rs 1,900 crore to women self-help groups (SHGs) as against the ambitious target of Rs 11,775 crore set for the 2010-11 financial year. “Bankers are not at all positive on social-sector lending. As long as banks are not able to achieve total financial inclusion, alternative source of credit is required and thus MFIs have become a necessary evil,” a district Collector observed. How the Centre and the state governments handle this evil is anxiously watched even as reports of suicides by harassed small loan borrowers continue to come in from different parts of the state.

Chiru trimming up for his 150th venture

Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: With his next feature film set to be launched in January 2011, actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi is now busy losing weight, the extra kilos he has put on over the last four years since his last film Shankar Dada Zindabad (remake of Lagey Raho Munna Bhai). Chiranjeevi visited the US recently reportedly for a liposuction treatment as part of the weight reduction programme. Fatty foods are now off his menu and Chiranjeevi is mostly taking nutritional drinks these days to keep himself "fit" for his 150th silver screen venture, one of his aides said. The audience at an audio release function here the other day was pleasantly surprised to see a "trim" Chiru, as he is fondly called, clad in a sleek jeans trouser and white shirt. The Telugu Megastar quit films after a 30-year career in August 2008 and launched the Praja Rajyam Party. He, however, made it clear while launching the political outfit that he might don the grease paint again to feature in films that carried a social message. On his son and upcoming actor Ramcharan Tej's prodding, Chiru made a guest appearance in Magadheera starring Tej last year, that went on to become a blockbuster. Now, Charan himself will be producing a full-length feature film with his father. Though the film is expected to go to the sets in January, Chiranjeevi is still scouting for the right script that befits his new stature as a politician. Apart from the script, the increasing flab in his body has been a major concern for 56-year-old Chiranjeevi, who was left with the only option of cutting it. "One can't imagine a Chiranjeevi film without his trendy dances and stylish stunts. Obviously his body should be in the right shape for that and hence he is consciously doing everything in that direction," a key aide of the actor said. Following a weight-reduction regimen is not new to Chiranjeevi. Even during the late part of his career in the late 1990s when he was doing one film after the other, Chiru had to cut his flab. "It happened when Chiru did films like Mrugaraju and Daddy though he once again looked stout in movies like Stalin and Shankar Dada Zindabad. Now again he is keen on regaining the old charming looks," the aide pointed out. Praja Rajyam sources say Chiranjeevi has stopped eating even biscuits at the party meetings and has been taking only liquid diet specially brought from home. With a younger lot of stars with six-pack bodies and lanky physiques ruling the tinsel town, Chiranjeevi certainly has a task on hand in his silver-screen re-coming.

JALAYAGNAM: The scene so far

Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: By any count, the most ambitious and equally controversial “Jalayagnam” programme undertaken by the Andhra Pradesh government has been a disaster so far.
Controversies, legal battles, environmental concerns, adverse observations by the Comptroller and Auditor General over large-scale financial misappropriation, lack of statutory clearances, inter-state disputes, natural calamities and, above all, a grave financial crunch have contributed to the grandiose programme going way off the track over the last six years.
When initially conceived in 2004 by the then Y S Rajasekhara Reddy government, the Jalayagnam – dubbed by the rulers as a “massive water conservation ritual” – was meant to provide water for irrigation to an additional 82 lakh acres of agricultural land in Andhra, Rayalaseema and Telangana regions of the state through 32 major and 17 medium projects in five years (by 2009). The initial cost estimates for these projects were Rs 65,000 crore.
Six years after the programme was launched, the government had already spent Rs 53,206 crore but could irrigate only an additional 26.25 lakh acres as per the latest count. By now the number of projects under the programme has gone up to 88, including 44 major and 30 medium, to irrigate an additional one crore acres while the cost too escalated to a staggering Rs 1,79,679 crore. Of the total, 39 have been identified as “priority” projects that will be completed in the first go.
The revised deadline for completion of the Jalayagnam programme is year 2014 – when general elections are due in the state – but, by all means, even that deadline will be missed, Irrigation Department officials admit.
All the works have come to a virtual standstill as the state government owes over Rs 6,000 crore to the contractors executing the projects. Given the severe financial crisis, the government is finding it difficult to clear the dues and let the works progress, the officials say. “We have cleared dues amounting to over Rs 1,500 crore so far and will be clearing the balance in a phased manner,” a top official of the Department said.
“We have completed 12 irrigation projects in the last six years, including four major, under Jalayagnam. These projects created a capacity to impound an additional 295 tmc ft of water which in turn contributes to an additional agricultural production worth Rs 8,850 crore per annum in the state,” Major Irrigation Minister Ponnala Lakshmaiah claimed.
Chief Minister K Rosaiah or Lakshmaiah never lose an opportunity to proclaim that Jalayagnam continues to be the government’s “flagship” programme and will be completed at all costs.
There is a rider, of course: the Government of India should be magnanimous to accord “national status” to at least three major projects so that the state can get 90 per cent of funds as grant.
Take the case of the multi-purpose Polavaram irrigation project on river Godavari.
For the last six years, the state government has been desperately seeking national status for Polavaram even as the project cost has shot up from Rs 10,151 crore in 2009 to Rs 17,600 crore as per the latest estimates. But there has so far been no word from the Centre on granting national status to the project while neighbouring Orissa is strongly fighting against it claiming that the project would lead to submergence of many villages on its side.
AP and Orissa are now locked in a legal battle in the Supreme Court over Polavaram.
Another major controversial project, the Pranahita-Chevella Lift Irrigation Scheme, has not got any statutory clearance from the Centre even two years after it was launched with a lot of fanfare. The project cost too shot up from Rs 33,500 crore to over Rs 40,000 crore now, official sources say. AP is not in a position to complete this project on its own and is looking desperately towards the Centre for according “national status” and bearing 90 per cent of the cost.
This project alone needs 3466 MW of power to lift water from Pranahita, a tributary of river Godavari, to a height of 1343 meters, resulting in an annual recurring expenditure of over Rs 2,300 crore.
“It is utterly foolish to take up such a project involving huge recurring expenditure. Can the government assure that it is ready to bear the annual expenditure,” questioned Lok Satta Party president and MLA N Jayaprakash Narayan.
But, the government has simply brushed aside his contention and asserted that it would go ahead with the project “for the betterment of Telangana.”
Pranahita-Chevella was mired in another controversy when it came to light that an astounding Rs 1,100 crore was paid to a private consultant for preparation of the detailed project report of which Rs 600 crore was already paid. The Public Accounts Committee of the state Legislature saw red over this and forced the irrigation department authorities to stop further payments.
Alarm bells, however, started ringing in the state government when Union Water Resources Minister Pavan Kumar Bansal stated that only one intra-state project would be funded under the category of national project. Chief Minister Rosaiah immediately wrote a letter to Bansal recalling that the Pranahita-Chevella project was among the 25 medium and major irrigation projects included in the Prime Minister’s package and was thus eligible for financial support under the Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme.
Still, there has been no response from the Centre on this, official sources in the Chief Minister’s Office said.
Another major project that has overshot several deadlines is Pulichintala on river Krishna. Meant to stabilize an ayacut of 13.5 lakh acres in five districts in Krishna’s command area, this project was supposed to be ready in 2007 but not even 60 per cent of the works have been completed yet, official sources admit. “The coffer dam of the project got washed away in floods at least three times leading to inordinate delay in completion of Pulichintala,” they say.
Such examples are one too many in the Jalayagnam story. And, it has no end in sight.

KONIJETI ROSAIAH: A FRAGILE CHIEF MINISTER

Desaraju Surya
Hyderabad: Konijeti Rosaiah had always been comfortable playing second-fiddle to any Congress Chief Minister in Andhra Pradesh over the years.
He, however, finds himself ill-at-ease being the Chief Minister as was evident in the last one year that he has been in the hot seat of power.
As he himself noted a few days ago, it had indeed been a “tight rope walk” for Rosaiah as Chief Minister, given the pulls and pressures from different quarters.
From a rather strong situation, the state has plunged into a vulnerable position in just one year because of various factors, beginning with the tragic death in a helicopter crash of a powerful Chief Minister.
The ruling Congress is in total mess; the strife over the demand for bifurcation of the state has only gone into a pause mode and threatens to snowball in the months to come; the state is still facing the economic recession blues and governance has become the biggest casualty leaving the people in the lurch.
Rosaiah himself is plagued by health problems, leading to doubts over his fitness to rule.
Rosaiah ascended the Chief Minister’s throne on September 3 last year following the death of Y S Rajasekhara Reddy in a helicopter crash on September 2.
It took more than three months for him to actually settle down in the new position and take control of the situation as the state moved from “one crisis to the other.”
By the time he could gain a grip on the administration, the Chief Minister was confronted with trouble from within his party in the form of a virtual rebellion from Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, who set his eyes on the Chief Minister’s chair.
Though he left the Jagan issue to be handled by the Congress high command, Rosaiah could not breathe easy as he was not given the complete authority to rule, unlike his predecessor.
Everyone initially acknowledged that Rosaiah, given his vast political experience, was an “able administrator” though not an “able leader.” But now, given the sorry state of affairs, his credentials as an administrator too are at stake, political observers point out.
Bureaucrats say there has been a lack of “cohesiveness” in the administration in the last one year.
“Administration has become CM-centric when both N Chandrababu Naidu and Y S Rajasekhara Reddy were at the helm of affairs. Being powerful leaders, their writ ran large and the entire administration functioned according to their diktats. Bureaucrats used to look to the Chief Minister for everything previously as all instructions came from him directly. It’s not the case anymore,” a top-ranking IAS officer noted, explaining the “slackness” that is currently apparent in the functioning of the government.
The Chief Minister’s attempts to tone up the administration through a bureaucratic shake-up did not bear fruit for one reason or the other. “This has also left the bureaucracy in a state of despondency, leaving a telling impact on the administration,” a high-ranking IAS officer pointed out.
Rosaiah is famous for managing the state’s finances effectively given the fact that he presented not less than 16 Budgets over the years. As Chief Minister, who continues to hold the Finance portfolio, he is finding it an uphill task to continue the development and welfare agenda left behind by his predecessor.
All the major development projects have virtually come to a standstill as the government owes lot of money to the contractors.
Uncertainty prevails even over the welfare programmes as the subsidy bill has become too much to bear for the government.
Rosaiah, however, sought to “re-assure” everyone that not a single programme initiated by Rajasekhara Reddy would be abandoned. He is also unwilling to admit that governance has been paralysed in the state. “I am doing my best and touring the state. Even my ministers are doing their job,” he pointed out.
The general perception about his administration in the state is, however, entirely different from what the Chief Minister feels.

THE GREATEST LEGAL PARADOX

THIS IS SAID TO BE THE GREATEST PARADOX IN RECORDED LEGAL HISTORY.

A few centuries ago, a Law teacher came across a student who was willing to learn, but was unable to pay the fees.
The student struck a deal saying, "I will pay your fee the day I win my first case in the court."
Teacher agreed and proceeded with the law course.
When the course was finished and the teacher started pestering the student to pay up the fee, the student reminded him of the deal and pushed days. Fed up with this, the teacher decided to sue the student in the court of law and both of them decided to argue for themselves.
The teacher put forward his argument saying: "If I win this case, as per the court of law, the student has to pay me as the case is about his non-payment of dues. And if I lose the case, the student will still pay me because he would have won his first case. So, either way I will have to get the money."
Equally brilliant, the student argued back saying: "If I win the case, as per the court of law, I don't have to pay anything to the teacher as the case is about my non-payment of dues. And if I lose the case, I don't have to pay him because I haven't won my first case yet. So either way, I am not going to pay the teacher anything".
This is one of the greatest paradoxes ever recorded in the Legal history.

(Reproduced from an email sent by my dear anna.)

The Great INDIAN Enterprise!

A Blackberry addict discovers grassroot enterprise in India.

A smaller ‘hole in the wall’ you cannot imagine. A small fading sign on the top saying “Cellphoon Reapars” is barely visible through the street vendors crowding the Juhu Market in Mumbai. On my way to buy a new Blackberry, my innate sense of adventure (foolishness) made me stop my car and investigate. The ‘shop’ was not more than 6 feet by 6 feet. Grimy and un-cleaned.

"Can you fix my Blackberry?” I asked the young boy.

"Of course I can, show me.”

“How old are you?”

"Sixteen."

Bullshit. He was no more than 10. I am not handing my precious Blackberry to a 10 year old in unwashed and torn T shirt and pyjamas! At least, if I buy a new Blackberry in a proper Store, they would extract my data for me. Something I have been meaning to do for over a year now.

"What’s wrong with it?”

"Well, the roller track ball does not respond. It’s kind of stuck andI cannot operate it.”

He grabs it from my hand and looks at it.

“You should wash your hands. Many customers have same problem. Roller ball gets greasy and dirty, then not working."

Look who was telling me to wash my hands! He probably has not bathed for 10 days. I leaned across to snatch my useless Blackberry back.

“You come back in one hour and I fix it."

I am not leaving all my precious data in this unwashed kid's hands for an hour. No way.

“Who will fix it?”

"Big brother."
"How big is ‘big brother'?"

"Big …. umm ..thirty."

Then suddenly big brother walks in. 30 ??? He is no more than 19.

"What problem," he says, grabbing the phone from my greasy hand into his greasier hand. Obviously he never got trained in etiquette by any up-market retail stores manager.

"Normal Blackberry problem. I replace it with original part now. You must wash your hands before you use this."

What is this about me washing my hands suddenly?? 19-year-old big brother rummages through a dubious drawer, full of junk, and fishes out a spare roller ball packed in cheap cellophane wrapper. Original part? I doubt it. But, by now, I am in the lap of the real India and there is no escape as he fishes out a couple of screwdrivers and sets about opening my Blackberry.

“How long will this take?”

“Six minutes.”

This I have to see. After spending the whole morning trying to find a Blackberry service centre and getting vague answers about sending the phone in for an assessment that might take a week, I settle down next to his grubby cramped work space. At least, I am going to be able to watch all my stored data vanish into virtual space. Unknown strangers crowd around to see what’s happening. I am not breathing easy anyway. I tell myself this is an adventure and I literally have to stop myself grabbing my precious Blackberry back and making a quick escape.

But, in exactly six minutes, this kid handed me my Blackberry back. He had changed the part and cleaned and serviced the whole phone, taken it apart and put it together. As I turned the phone on there was a horrific 2 minutes where the phone would not come on. I looked at him with such hostility that he stepped back.

"You have more than thousand phone numbers?”

"Yes."

"Backed up?"

"No."

"Must back up. I do it for you. Never open phone before backing up."

"You tell me that now?"

But then the phone came on and my data was still there. Everyone watching laughed and clapped. This was becoming a public street show. A six minute show. I asked him how much for his effort and the new roller ball part.

"500 rupees", he ventured uncertainly.

People around watched in glee expecting a negotiation. That's $ 10 as against the Rs. 30,000 ($ 600) I was about to spend on a new Blackberry or manage a couple of weeks without my phone. I looked suitably shocked at his ‘high price’ but calmly paid him, much to the disappointment of the expectant crowd.

"Do you have an iPhone? Even the new ‘4′ one?"
"No, why?”
"I can break the code for you and load any ‘app’ or film you want. I give you 10 film on your memory stick on this one, and change every week for small fee."

I went home having discovered the true entrepreneurship that lies at what we call the ‘bottom of the pyramid’. Some may call it piracy, which of course it is, but what can you say about a two uneducated and untrained brothers, aged 10 and 19, that set up a ‘hole in the wall’ shop and can fix any technology that the greatest technologists in the world can throw at them! I smiled at the future of our country. If only we could learn to harness this potential!

"Please wash your hands before use", were his last words to me.

AP "Babus" have a field day without work

Desaraju Surya
HYDERABAD: Sitting in his Hyderabad office, a mid-level Indian Administrative Service officer in Andhra Pradesh was “busy” working on his computer. His Facebook account was open and he was quite seriously “posting” messages to some of his online friends. “Just killing time, as there is nothing much official work to do,” he remarks. Another IAS officer in an other office was also “busy” typing his latest “blog post” that would immediately be uploaded on the world-wide web. “These are the things we normally do once in a while in our spare time but these days we have a lot of it during working hours itself. It’s cool,” the officer quips as a matter-of-fact. Many officers, of course, are also active on “Twitter” following the tweets of Paul Krugman, Shashi Tharoor, The Economist and the like “just to keep updated with the trends.” Some IAS officers in the state are opting for mid-career training programmes that run for a week or two either in India or abroad and packing their bags to “enjoy an outing.” A few are happily flying abroad on “official assignments” despite a clear ban on foreign jaunts by bureaucrats.All this is a clear reflection of the “dormant” state of administration in Andhra Pradesh where governance, as bureaucrats admit, has remained paralyzed for the past few months. Given the acute funds crunch faced by the state government, implementation of welfare programmes and development works has become a major casualty while there is an unwritten ban on new schemes. This is one reason being cited by those in the government about the lackadaisical functioning of the entire administration. “In practical terms there is nothing to do in the districts in the given situation. Things are happening only as a matter of routine in the absence of any authoritative monitoring,” the bureaucrats say.With the Cabinet ministers busy with their own political work, administrative reviews have become few and far between in recent months. The Chief Minister has been conducting reviews of different departments periodically but nothing much is apparently happening down the line.
“Administration has become CM-centric when both N Chandrababu Naidu and Y S Rajasekhara Reddy were at the helm of affairs. Being powerful leaders, their writ ran large and the entire administration functioned according to their diktats. Bureaucrats used to look to the Chief Minister for everything previously as all instructions came from him directly. It’s not the case anymore,” a top-ranking IAS officer noted, explaining the “slackness” that is currently apparent in the functioning of the government. "What is clearly lacking in the state administration today is the direction. Hence, nobody is clear about what to do or what not to do," retired bureaucrat K Prabhakar Reddy, who also worked in the Chief Minister's Office noted. Incidentally, the incumbents in the CMO are busy doing fire-fighting what with several controversies dogging the government. Also, there are allegedly internal squabbles among bureaucrats in the CMO compounding the chaos, sources say. Hitherto, ministers used to tour the districts regularly and conduct review meetings on the functioning of their respective departments. Given the hostility between the two regions of Andhra Pradesh over the demand for division of the state, ministers from Telangana region have virtually stopped touring Andhra-Rayalaseema region. And, fearing protests by the separatists, ministers from Andhra-Rayalaseema are not venturing into Telangana. Even within the respective regions, holding of review meetings by ministers has become a rare occurrence, according to a district Collector. “In the last two months, there was just one review meeting with ministers in my district. We did not even conduct the District Review Committee meeting for many months now,” the Collector pointed out. Chief Minister K Rosaiah’s visits to different districts too have been very limited because of various factors, including his health condition, official sources say. All this is leaving a telling impact on the government’s functioning but when will things be back on track is a question that has no answer yet.

The Great AP Political Tamasha

Desaraju Surya
HYDERABAD: Welcome to the “great Andhra Pradesh political tamasha.”
It is high on intensity and low on sanity. There are multiple actors in this daily play but each has his own script and screenplay. Everyone tries to outdo the other and score political brownie points but end up nowhere really.
The principal actors in this sordid drama are leaders of the ruling Congress, the main opposition Telugu Desam, the other opposition Praja Rajyam and the separatist Telangana Rashtra Samiti. The extra parts are handled by BJP, CPI and CPM while Lok Satta Party has an insignificant cameo.
The political soap opera has been running for long and, like a never-ending television serial, is mostly-televised but with lots of amusement.
Along with the own script, each actor has an exclusive (television) channel to showcase his act without others stealing the limelight. Of course, the actors are ably aided by some channels which orchestrate the agenda that suits “their” interest.
One actor (Chiranjeevi) is sulking, though, since he feels no channel is leaving him any screen space, overlooking his exploits. Hence, he too is seeking to set up his own (television) shop for better marketing.
Interestingly, the Congress’ act in itself has all the features of a unique potboiler. Though the Congress characters are supposed to be on one side, they fight each other adding more spice to drama.
Congress leaders from Telangana spit venom at their own ministers from Andhra-Rayalaseema region for opposing the bifurcation of the state. The so-called Y S Jagan camp is at loggerheads not only with Chief Minister K Rosaiah but also with the party high command. Supporters of Rosaiah are “goading” the “impatient” Kadapa MP by digging out the “misdeeds” committed during his father Y S Rajasekhara Reddy’s regime, much to the discomfiture of the young man who is unwilling to settle for anything less than the Chief Minister’s chair.
Jagan’s “loyalists” wouldn’t take kindly to such denigration of their departed leader (YSR) and would repulse any attack.
Nevertheless, the bigwigs “attached” to Rosaiah are busy pulling the skeletons out of the YSR regime’s cupboard.
This brings cheer to the opposition camp as it gets more ammunition to step up its offensive against the enemy (Congress). The Telugu Desam, in the past five years, has lost no opportunity to expose the brazen corruption in the Congress rule and is now getting pep to its drive from the very rulers themselves.
A case in point is the unearthing of a “Rs 10,000 crore scam”, dated back to the YSR regime, by two senior Congress MLAs D L Ravindra Reddy and J C Diwakar Reddy. Now, other senior Congress leaders are readying for more such “exposés”, making the job easier for the TDP.
The Praja Rajyam president K Chiranjeevi is a widely-acclaimed actor before he donned the political greasepaint. In the political arena, however, he is proving a mismatch to the other actors. His party is about to celebrate its second anniversary but Chiranjeevi is apparently in a serious state of confusion.
On one hand, he is strongly critical of the state government over its policies but, on the other, is building close ties with the ruling party. Chiranjeevi is currently on a tour of the state to reinvent himself as a political leader but unable to decide who is his rival or what is his objective.
The TRS has a one-point agenda: of achieving statehood for Telangana. Having achieved a landslide in the recent by-elections, the separatist force has become more ferocious. While fighting the government on certain administrative issues, the TRS has turned its ire more on the TDP leading to a slanging match between leaders of the two parties.
TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu is forced to do multi-tasking these days. Keeping his own party, which has split vertically on regional lines, intact has become his main task. As Leader of Opposition, taking on the Congress is his mandate but he is also forced to contend with the PRP and the TRS that have stepped up the attack against him, all at a time.
The two Left parties, luckily, are on Chandrababu’s side, helping him combat the Congress.
Lok Satta Party chief N Jayaprakash Narayan, who quit a cushy IAS position and became an MLA, to cleanse the political rot, unfortunately, finds himself lost in the crowd.
Counting on its national stature, the BJP is trying to make its presence felt in the state but with little impact.
The curtains aren’t yet down and there are no commercial breaks even. Thus, the saga continues…..

It should be a sentimental gain for TRS in by-polls

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.