TIRUPATI: The BJP has intensified its campaign for the April 17 Tirupati Lok Sabha by-election. After winning the Dubbaka by-poll in Telangana, the party, which is banking on the various development programmes going on in the temple city under various Central schemes, wants to spring a surprise in Andhra Pradesh by winning the seat, defeating both the ruling YSRC and Opposition TDP.
The party started groundwork in the constituency for the bypoll much earlier and organised state-level meetings in Tirupati recently. BJP State chief Somu Veerraju held many review meetings with leaders and cadre. It may be noted that, in the 1999 general elections, BJP candidate Dr N Venkataswamy bagged the seat with 48.89 per cent of votes when it contested along with the TDP.
The BJP has fielded K Ratna Prabha, former Karnataka Chief Secretary, for the bypoll. The party has formed a 24-member committee to oversee the election campaign. “BJP MPs and other senior leaders welcomed the selection of Ratna Prabha as the candidate for the Tirupati bypoll. Ratna Prabha has served the State in various capacities during her tenure as an IAS official. Both BJP and Jana Sena leaders will work together for Ratna Prabha’s victory in the by-election,” Somu Veerraju said.
Though BJP and Jana Sena are in alliance, political experts say that there is no coordination between the two parties in the election campaign. The BJP leaders, sources said, are not discussing its campaign strategy with the Jana Sena leaders in Nellore district. In fact, the Jana Sena has some hold in Nellore city. Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan has a strong bonding with Nellore city. Pawan Kalyan stayed in Nellore when his father was working with the Excise department and he was a student of St Joseph School and VR College in Nellore city.
It may be recalled that Chiranjeevi’s Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) nominee M Sridhar Krishna Reddy bagged Nellore city Assembly seat in 2009 in a three-cornered fight involving the Congress and TDP. “The BJP is not taking the Jana Sena leaders into confidence in some areas and it is not informing the JSP about the poll meetings. The BJP leaders are not coordinating with us,” said a senior Jana Sena leader.
Pawan Kalyan will campaign: Ratna Prabha
BJP-JSP candidate K Ratna Prabha, who will file her nomination in Nellore on Monday, visited Tirupati city and interacted with party workers on Sunday. Addressing the media in Tirupati, Ratna Prabha said Jana Sena Party chief Pawan Kalyan would participate in the election campaign. Responding to the allegations of corruption made by CPI leader K Narayana against her, she refuted them sternly and asked Narayana to prove the same. Explaining the development activities taken up by the BJP, Ratna Prabha said the Union government has laid focus on developing the Tirupati city.