Even as he is keeping his mind open on the question of floating a new political party though slowly veering in that direction, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and his aides are seriously engaged in preparatory work, including getting extensive surveys done in Andhra-Rayalaseema regions, to assess public mood.
Going by the questions framed for the surveys, it is clear the Chief Minister intends to obtain clarity on the space for a new party with Samaikyandhra as the main slogan and if he is seen as an alternative in that context. A separate survey is also being conducted to identify prominent people in each constituency who have participated in the United AP stir and if any of them could be chosen as potential candidates for the new party.
Three Congress MPs — Lagadapati Rajagopal, Rayapati Sambasiva Rao and Undavalli Arun Kumar and MLAs Routu Suryaprakash Rao and Veera Siva Reddy — are chief among those said to be egging on Kiran Reddy to float a new party on the ground that almost all existing parties are being blamed by the people for division of the State and, therefore, would welcome a new player. They seem to be filling the Chief Minister’s ears with the theory that the manner in which he took on the Congress leadership on the issue of division without caring for consequences would stand him in goodstead vis-a-vis the other existing players.
In the main survey with a total 20 queries, the following key questions suggest the answers the Chief Minister is seeking to know. They are: 1) Who do you think is fighting strongly to keep the state united: a) Kiran Kumar Reddy, b) Chandrababu Naidu c) YS Jagan d) BV Raghavulu e) Ashok Babu 2) Is there a need for a new party in Seemandhra in the context of bifurcation 3) Do you think that Kiran Reddy should float a new party with Samaikyandhra slogan 4) Do you believe that YS Jagan Mohan secured bail only after he struck a deal with Congress and 5) If Kiran launches a new party, will it succeed in elections?
In a related questionnaire, the survey seeks to know the following information, apparently as part of the exercise to identify suitable candidates for the new party. 1) Name five people in your constituency who have actively participated in the Samaikyandhra agitation; 2) Name five people who have the interest/capacity to contest as MLA/MP 3) Name five people who are willing to quit jobs and enter politics 4) Who are the prominent people in your constituency engaged in social work and 5) Name strong second-line leaders in your constituency among the existing parties.
The orientation programme for field investigators identified for conducting the survey was originally slated for Sunday at Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and Hyderabad but the Chief Minister reportedly wanted it to be deferred by a few days to “modify a few questions.” The size of the sample per constituency is expected to be in the range of 500-1000. Apart from the above survey being done on behalf of Kiran Kumar Reddy, a separate survey was said to have been commissioned by Rajagopal while a channel linked to the Chief Minister’s family is engaged in a similar exercise.
Besides the surveys, ground work for the new party has already commenced through apolitical platforms. As part of this, a 20-page booklet in Telugu and five pamphlets have been printed, a few songs are also being readied, all of them with the underlying theme of why the State should be united and the difficulties/problems that people of Andhra-Rayalaseema will face in the event of bifurcation.
The pamphlets have been divided subject-wise, each dealing with one specific issue — irrigation, education/jobs, river waters and Hyderabad. The booklet, with Kiran’s image in the background to the title Samaikyandhra Simham, is a compilation of reports carried in a newspaper on the press conferences held by the Chief Minister.
At the press conferences, Kiran had explained the “disastrous consequences” of the UPA’s decision to bifurcate the State. Likewise, the pamphlets too narrate how each of the important sectors would suffer on account of division and ends with a line that emphasizes how the Chief Minister and, he alone, has been fighting to keep the state united. The booklet has a tagline too that Kiran has been repeatedly using: ”People will declare a holiday for parties and governments that do not take the right decisions.” A leading advt agency has been roped in to prepare the campaign material and it is being funded through private channels.
The booklet and the pamphlets, are proposed to be distributed at meetings organized by Employees’ JAC at different places in Seemandhra. Kiran seems to believe that carrying his message home through such apolitical platforms will lay the foundation for any political step he may like to take at the right time.