KAKINADA: Caste plays an important role in any elections and Kakinada Municipal Corporation election is no different. In fact, caste equations will be the deciding factor in the KMC elections, that are being held after a long gap. Out of the total population of 3.25 lakh people, BCs form a large chunk with fishermen community (16 castes and sub-castes) followed by forward castes, which is dominated by Kapu community.
There are 2,38,170 voters in KMC of which BCs have a share of 1,21,182 that is 50.7 per cent, SCs have 8.9 per cent and STs a mere 0.25 per cent. The other castes make up 40.9 per cent among them 69.9 percent belong to Kapu community. In other words, 28.61 per cent of total voters belong to Kapu community. Kapus have played an important role in determining the outcome of any elections.
Now, following Kapu patriarch Mudragada Padmanabham’s agitation for BC status, resentment against the ruling party is brewing among them. However, the ruling party, which also has a sizable number of Kapu leaders and supporters, is trying to bank on the fact that it was the TDP government which had set up the Kapu Corporation with `1000-crore budget and it was the one which had constituted Manjunath Commission.
As 25 divisions of the KMC out of 48 going for polls are dominated by Kapu community, both ruling and opposition parties have fielded their candidates belonging to that community. While TDP wants to cash in on the promises made and sops announced to Kapus, the YSRC is bagging on the resentment among Kapus. The outcome of KMC polls will be an indication of which side the Kapus, which dominates the twin Godavari districts, are leaning towards.