ADILABAD : It’s not just the mercury that is soaring in the erstwhile Adilabad district — election fervour too has heated up the public discourse in the region as the Lok Sabha polls draw near.
The upcoming elections have caught the imagination of people in both rural and urban areas, with almost everyone talking about the chances of the candidates fielded by the main parties.
Understandably, the fact that no party has won the Adilabad Lok Sabha seat twice in succession since 2009 invariably finds its way into the discussions. This also gives rise to the question whether the BJP will retain the seat, having won it in 2019.
Since the constituency was reserved for Scheduled Tribes in 2009, it has consistently produced varied electoral results. Both regional and national parties have not been able to retain the seat from 2009 to 2019.
In undivided Andhra Pradesh in 2009, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) candidate clinched victory in the Adilabad parliamentary segment. Subsequently, amidst the fervour of the Telangana movement in 2014, the TRS (now BRS) candidate emerged victorious. The 2019 General Elections brought a historic win for the BJP, despite the saffron party lacking representation from the district in the state Assembly.
In the 2018 Assembly elections, the BRS secured victories in all seven Assembly constituencies that come under the Adilabad Lok Sabha segment. However, its candidate for the Lok Sabha seat failed to replicate this success.
The BJP’s district leadership is apprehensive about the upcoming results, given the trend of no party securing a second term from 2009 to 2019. The unexpected outcome of the 2019 parliamentary elections, where the BRS fell short of expectations despite holding seven MLAs, adds to the uncertainty.
Meanwhile, the Congress has introduced a new contender for the seat — Attram Suguna, a retired teacher, has thrown her hat into the ring.
The BJP has replaced its sitting MP Soyam Bapu Rao with G Nagesh while the BRS has fielded former MLA Atram Sakku.
Different wins
Since it was reserved for STs in 2009, Adilabad has consistently produced varied electoral results