RAJAMAHENDRAVARAM: The undivided West Godavari district was considered as a bastion of TDP ever since its inception. In the 2019 elections, the TDP bite the dust with the YSRC winning 13 of the total 15 Assembly seats. The TDP could manage to bag only two seats.
Eluru and Narasapuram Lok Sabha constituencies in the district were also won by the YSRC. Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan, who contested from Bhimavaram to make his political debut, also tasted defeat. The tally of YSRC went up from zero in 2014 to 13 in 2019. In the 2014 elections, the TDP made a clean sweep by winning 14 seats and the remaining one went to its ally BJP.
Now, the political situation in West Godavari seems to have changed a lot. The ruling YSRC is banking on its welfare agenda to make a clean sweep in the next elections as part of its Mission 175. The Opposition TDP and JSP are trying to make use of the anti-incumbency factor to win more number of seats in the 2024 elections. The district has a strong Kapu vote bank.
The JSP has a strong base in almost all Assembly constituencies, particularly in Palakol, Narasapuram, Bhimavaram, Tanuku, Tadepalligudem, Nidadavolu, Achanta and Eluru. TDP and JSP leaders are of the view that they can won majority of seats if the two parties fight unitedly.
Kapus constitute about 25-30% of the total population in 20 of the total 34 Assembly segments in the undivided East and West Godavari districts. However, this does not mean that the JSP can come out with flying colours in the elections considering the fact that prominent Kapu leaders Chiranjeevi and Pawan Kalyan tasted defeat in the past from Palakol and Bhimavaram Assembly segments, while Konidela Nagababu lost the election from Narasapuram Lok Sabha constituency.
The YSRC is facing internal bickerings in some of the Assembly constituencies. It is a fact that Kanumuri Raghurama Krishnam Raju, who won from Narasapuram Lok Sabha constituency on YSRC ticket in the last elections, had raised a banner of revolt against the party leadership. However, the YSRC is riding high on the plethora of welfare schemes launched by the Jagan Mohan Reddy government. The Kapu Nestham scheme may influence the voters of Kapu community in YSRC favour. Apart from this, the government has given a major facelift to several schools and hospitals in the district under the Nadu-Nadu scheme.
The western delta people’s long cherished dream of having a medical college has also been realised with the government sanctioning one for Palakol.The YSRC is confident of retaining all the four reserved seats Kovvur, Gopalapuram and Chintalapudi (SC) and Polavaram (ST) seats in the district as the government has laid emphasis on empowerment of SCs and STs socially, politically and economically.
On the other hand, the Opposition TDP is making all out efforts to regain people’s trust by highlighting the ‘anti-farmer’ policies of the YSRC government and the plight of aquaculturists. West Godavari district politics is entirely different from other districts.The Kshatriya community has strong financial base in Bhimavaram, Undi, Achanta and Narasapuram. The electoral prospects of the major political parties are largely dependent on the support of dominant castes.
On the other hand, the BJP has a presence in constituencies like Eluru, Kovvur, Bhimavaram, Palakol, Narasapuram, Tadepalligudem and Polavaram. But it may not be able to win the seats on its own. For the YSRC, it needs a great effort to retain all the 13 Assembly seats and two Lok Sabha segments won by it in the last elections in 2024. It does not have a strong leader, who can lead the YSRC from the front. The party is mainly dependent on the charisma of CM Jagan Mohan Reddy and his welfare schemes, a political analyst observed.
YSRC leader and Kovvur municipal chairperson V Ratnakumari exuded confidence that the party will win all the 15 seats, including Palakol and Undi in the next Assembly elections. JSP leader T Ramalingam, however, opined that the rising popularity of the party will certainly improve its poll prospects in 2024.
‘Schemes will help ensure YSRC win’
“The welfare schemes are reaching almost all the sections of people. Hence, people belonging to all the communities are on our side, which helps ensure the victory of YSRC in the next elections,” asserted Kovvur municipal chairperson Ratnakumari