Campaigning ends in Seemandhra, TDP-YSR keen contest expected

Campaigning for the simultaneous elections to the 25 Lok Sabha constituencies and 175 Assembly segments in Seemandhra came to a close on Monday evening. Polling in the residuary state will be held on Wednesday.

A total of 333 candidates are in the fray for the 25 Parliamentary seats while another 2,243 will lock horns for the 175 seats with most places facing multi-cornered contest.

The main fight, however, will be between the Telugu Desam Party-BJP combine and the YSR Congress (YSRC) led by Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, son of former chief minister late Y S Rajasekhar Reddy.

The Congress is faced with the ignominy of certain rout in the region following its decisive role in the creation of Telangana state.

Though some pollsters had given YSRC a clear edge in the early days of electioneering, the TDP, which has made development its election plank, appears to have regained lost ground subsequently, flaunting party president N Chandrababu Naidu’s track record as a ‘performing’ chief minister during his nine year tenure from 1995 to 2004.

Often described as the CEO of Andhra Pradesh for his aggressive approach towards development, particularly in Hyderabad, Naidu has been harping on the point that he alone has proven capabilities of developing Seemandhra and its new capital once the bifurcation takes effect on June 2.

The TDP chief, along with BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Nareandra Modi, have repeatedly sought to impress upon the people during their joint campaigns that a TDP government in the residuary state and a BJP-led NDA government in New Delhi was the perfect prescription for development.

In fact, Modi went a step further in claiming that any other Centre-state combination would prove to be fatal for the development of Seemandhra.

The YSRC, on the other hand, has been pushing hard it’s pro-poor and pro-minorities image by playing up the various welfare schemes launched for the down-trodden by YSR during his tenure from 2004 to 2009. Promising to continue with all the welfare schemes launched by his father, Jagan, playing the sympathy card, has vowed to bring back “Rajanna Rajyam,” referring to his father’s rule.

The respective political strategies adopted by the principal parties apart, traditionally, caste plays an important in Seemandhra politics, with Kammas, Reddys and Kapus calling the shots.

While Kamma votes can definitely be expected to go the TDP way, The Reddys, who dominated the Congress till the state’s division, are now split with both the TDP and the YSRC expected to benefit from the shift of loyalties.

The dominant Kapu community may well hold the aces, and their swing may decide the success of any party. Jagan, by fielding about 40 Kapu candidates, has made a big and calculated push for a major chunk of the community’s votes.

However, with actor-turned-politician Pawan Kalyan, a Kapu, throwing his weight behind the TDP-BP combine, the going may not be that easy for YSRC since the former enjoys mass following, particularly among the youth.

Moreover, the Congress’s campaign committee chairman and Pawan Kalyan’s elder brother K Chiranjeevi, himself a mega star in Tollywood during his hey days, can also be expected to pull in some Kapu votes, making it a three-way split.

While the TDP continues to hold sway among the Backward Classes, indications are that the Scheduled Castes are solidly behind Jagan.

The minorities would vote en masse for the YSRC following the TDP, which used to enjoy their support, striking an alliance with the saffron party.

Given the various permutations and combinations, one can expect an even and keen contest in Seemandhra, with both the TDP-BJP alliance and the YSRC running neck-to-neck in the electoral race at this critical stage.

For Naidu particularly, it is a do-or-die battle for political survival after two successive losses in 2004 and 2009.

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