PUDUCHERRY: Former Minister and Congress MLA from Yanam, Malladi Krishna (MK) Rao is likely to join the All India NR Congress for the 2016 Assembly elections.
This came to light at a function at Yanam on Tuesday, where Malladi Krishna Rao appealed to the fishermen community to support the Chief Minister N Rangasamy in the elections.
“The people of Yanam should show their gratitude to Rangasamy who has rendered Yanam immense help and implemented schemes and projects to a great extent,” said M K Rao, while speaking at a function organised by the Yanam Fishermen’s Welfare Association at Bejawada Garden in presence of the Chief Minister, Ministers, MLAs and other functionaries of AINRC on Tuesday.
Rao said that as far as he was concerned he would take the ‘right decision’ at the ‘right time’.
Already, six months ago, at a meeting in his residence in Yanam, more than 500 supporters who included leaders belonging to various communities, his supporters, former municipal and ward councillors, block Congress secretary and other office-bearers advised M K Rao to either join BJP which is in power at the Centre or AINRC which is ruling the Union Territory of Puducherry, as his remaining in Congress was no longer beneficial to the region.
Since Congress was no longer in power in Puducherry nor at the Centre, he is unable to depend on Congress for the development and welfare of the region.
The bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh has further affected Yanam region. Most of them had expressed that MK Rao should join AINRC.
On the other hand, AINRC, which is facing rebellion from within, wants to strengthen itself. It has offered Malladi Krishna Rao a Rajya Sabha seat for the elections to be held in the current year and offer the Yanam assembly seat to any person indicated by M K Rao. Any political party would like to have him in their fold as it would mean a sure electoral victory in Yanam for the party as no major challengers have emerged so far.
Though Malladi is yet to make any formal announcement, it is clear he has inclined towards the AINRC.
In the last budget session of the Assembly, MK Rao identified himself separately from Congress in the Assembly.
Objecting to AIADMK member’s allegations of corruption against the previous Congress government in which he was a Minister, Malladi said the charges against the Congress government should not include him, claiming he was clean, though they could make charges against the former Chief Minister V Vaithilingam. This stunned the members and the Assembly went silent for a minute.
For the MLA who has been elected from the constituency since 1996 continuously and that too by landside victories, he has been retaining the votebank, his strategy being securing funds from the Central government and Puducherry government for implementation of schemes and taking care of the welfare of the people and development of the region through it. This has given him the advantage to play his political card to his advantage. There has never been any dependence on Congress or any other party for electoral victory.
If Rao moves out of Congress, it certainly would be a setback for the Congress as the outlying regions have been their prime vote bank.