KADAPA: For the last three decades, Kadapa Assembly constituency has been represented by candidates from the Muslim community, irrespective of which party they belong to.
Notwithstanding the trend, the TDP has fielded Reddapgari Madhavi Reddy, a Hindu. She is the wife of TDP politburo member R Srinivasulu Reddy. On the other hand, the YSRC has renominated sitting MLA and Deputy Chief Minister (Minority Welfare) SB Amzad Basha, who is vying to secure a hat-trick win.
Political analysts have opined that the decision of the TDP to rope in a Hindu candidate might polarise the voters of the Kadapa Assembly constituency on communal lines.
The constituency has a significant population of both Hindus and Muslims and they often dictate the outcome of any election. Keeping this in mind, the ruling YSRC, in a bid to maintain communal balance in the city, nominates Muslims to legislative posts and allocates Mayor seats to Hindus.
Some of the top concerns of the voters in the constituency include the unaddressed drinking water woes, pending projects to beautify Bugganvanka stream and Old Kadapa Tank and construction of high-level bridges. The Rs 462-crore project proposed to divert water from Brahma Sagar to address drinking water problems in Kadapa is still at the initial stage.
Additionally, works to construct service roads leading to the protection wall of Buggavanka, infamous as the sorrow of Kadapa, are yet to be taken up. Stormwater drainage works, which were taken up at a cost of Rs 69.20 crore, are yet to be completed.
Amid this backdrop, incumbent MLA Amzad Basha has been campaigning to seek public mandate. He is going from door to door and explaining people how his party and him have strived to ensure welfare of the people of Kadapa, irrespective of caste and community.
“There are several more issues that need to be addressed and I assure you that once I get re-elected, I will strive to address all those issues on a top priority basis,” he tells voters during his campaigns.
Criticising the Deputy CM, Madhavi Reddy says, “Amzad Basha, though part of the cabinet, has done nothing for Kadapa. All his focus has been on improving his and his relatives’ wealth. Every street in Kadapa is an example of negligence of the incumbent MLA.”
She and her husband Srinivasulu have been campaigning from the time the party nominated her. However, they have not been getting the support needed from TDP leaders VS Amir Babu, who aspired for a ticket for the segment, and Lakshmi Reddy, who sought a ticket for his daughter-in-law Uma. Srinivasulu is reportedly not making much effort to pacify them. Nonetheless, a keen contest is being expected between the two.