Panabaka Lakshmi and her husband Panabaka Krishnaiah played a key role in the district Congress committee after the bifurcation of the State, but had recently shifted their loyalties to the TDP. The TDP, which was looking for a formidable contender for the Tirupati Lok Sabha seat, chose Lakshmi as their candidate. The couple has good hold on people in the Tirupati segments of Gudur, Sarvepalli, Sullurpeta and also the Venkatagiri Assembly constituency, which come under Tirupati Lok Sabha constituency. Lakshmi, in a brief interaction with D Surendra Kumar, said that she quit the Congress as she had lost all hopes of the party getting the Special Category Status (SCS) for AP. Excerpts
Why did you shift your loyalties from the Congress to the Telugu Desam Party?
We worked in the Congress only to obtain the SCS for the development of the bifurcated State. But, due to changes in political scenario in the State, we lost all our hopes on the Congress managing to get the SCS for the State. The TDP supremo and chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has introduced several welfare schemes for the poor and has also worked hard for the development of the State. Even we have observed implementation of the welfare schemes in the State. Chandrababu Naidu has also taken a stand against Narendra Modi to augment development of the State. With these developments, we decided to shift loyalties to the TDP. Chandrababu Naidu had also invited us and offered the Tirupati Lok Sabha seat for us.
What is your reaction to the allegations made by YSRCP chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy that the State government had taken no action to establish Dugarajapatnam port in the district?
Recently Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu had assured that the Dugarajapatnam port works would be taken up as it was part of the assurances made at the time of bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. Dugarajapatnam port will generate jobs for the local population. The TDP will definitely take up the Dugarajapatnam port works after coming to power again.
What are the assurances you have made to the voters of Tirupati Lok Sabha seat?
There are several. I will help develop Tirupati in all spheres and hence I propose a separate railway division for the temple city, which witnesses huge rush of devotees and continued traffic pressure. There is only Guntakal division, which is insufficient to handle the pressure. We have also lost part of the Waltair division, which goes to East Coast Railway and so we need a separate railway division. The Gudur-Dugarajapatnam railway line is still pending in spite of the Indian Railways sanctioning the project and I assure, I will take up the issue if I am elected from the constituency as the railway line will be very useful for the backward Vakadu and Kota areas of the Gudur division. Chandrababu Naidu had recently assured that an industrial hub would be set up at Satyavedu, connecting Nellore-Tirupati-Chennai. This hub has huge potential for the jobless in the region.
What are the issues identified by you in your Lok Sabha segment?
There is a need to set up a mega cluster for the Venkatagiri weavers and a textile park in the region will be good for their uplift. Even the Pulicat lake, which is an important water body, needs to be developed as an important tourism hub in the Nellore district. It will generate revenue for the government and also create a new place of recreation for the tourists. A trauma-care centre is very much needed in the Sullurpeta town, which is on the National Highway. I had sanctioned a trauma-care centre for the town itself, but still it had not happened. There are so many issues in the Tirupati Lok Sabha constituency and I assure that I will take up more issues for local development, if the local population decides to back my presence in Parliament.
What was the response from the public in Sarvepalli, Sullurpeta segments, strongholds of YSR Congress party, and were deciding factors for YSR Congress candidate during the last election?
I have been receiving overwhelming response from the public in Sullurpeta and also in Sarvepalli. People said that YSR Congress party had done nothing in the local segments. Voters have been praising TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu for implementation of welfare schemes for the local people. I have almost completed my campaign in those segments and voters are with us and they will give us majority in their segments.