Generally, infighting among the Congress leaders to get poll tickets is quite common during elections. This time, however, it is a totally different scenario in the state. Several Congress MLAs and others big wigs have left the party after the bifurcation of the state.
With poor or little response for tickets to contest the elections, the party has fielded several political novices or second rung leaders who have no following in the constituencies in several constituencies in Chittoor district.
The only ‘surprise’ element in the list is Madanapalle where the sitting MLA Md Shahjahan Basha was renominated. With almost all the sitting MLAs resigning to the party and even top leaders, who have some following among the masses, leaving the party, the Congress has found itself in a situation where it cannot contest all the seats.
As a damage-control measure, the party came up with a list of candidates which left the political circles little to guess about the winning chances of the candidates. ‘’Of the 13 assembly Assembly constituencies in the district, except for Madanapalle, the party lost all its sitting MLAs who migrated to other parties. Those who are contesting in the other segments are not known to people and are political novices,’’ Congress district Doctor’s Cell member Dr ST Ranganadhan said.
The only other person who is at least known among the party activists is DCC president C Venugopal Reddy, who would have to face a tough fight in Chandragiri where the TDP is fielding former minister
Galla Aruna Kumari and YSRC candidate Chevireddy Bhaskar Reddy. Venugopal Reddy was three time ZPTC of Erravaripalem in Chandragiri.
Chandragiri, which elected a Congress candidate in 2009, is unlikely to elect Congress candidate this time as the fight is directly between YSRC and the TDP. In Nagari, the Congress is fielding Satya Swarupa Indira. Except for being the daughter of former minister Reddyvari Chenga Reddy, Indira does not have any political experience or following among the cadres. She too faces a tough challenge in the form of actress politician Roja of the YSRC and seasoned politician Gali Muddukrishnama Naidu of the TDP. ‘’Her political inexperience is her liability,’’ a Congress leader of Nagari said.
The situation is similar in faction-hit Tamballapalle constituency which was also once a Congress stronghold. M Chandrasekhar Reddy, a former ZPTC and MPTC, is in the fray on Congress ticket this time. He would be facing strongman’s like A V Praveen Kumar Reddy of YSRC and B Sankar Yadav of TDP in one of the most toughest battle in the district.
The situation is more worse in Chittoor after C K Jayachandra Reddy alias CK Babu left the party. Now, the Congress is fielding P Rammurthy, who was earlier involved in liquor cases in the town. In Pileru too, the party could manage to field a candidate whose political experience is only of being a grandson of a former minister. Former minister Saifullah Baig’s grandson Dr Farooq Ali Khan is in the fray on Congress ticket.