CM Revanth Gives Strength of 1000 Elephants To Me, says Vamshi

Vamshi Chand Reddy was elected state president of Youth Congress in combined Andhra Pradesh in 2012. His election was significant: it was for the first time when the NSUI state president was not nominated by the party high command but democratically elected. The election was the idea of Rahul Gandhi who wanted to promote internal democracy in the party.

Vamshi Chand Reddy was elected MLA from Kalwakurthy in Mahbubnagar district in 2014 but lost in 2018. He also lost the Lok Sabha poll from Mahbubnagar within four months in April 2019. The Congress has placed its trust in Vamshi Chand Reddy again from Mahbubnagar.

In an exclusive interview with Deccan Chronicle, Vamshi Chand Reddy said the political situation had changed drastically in Mahbubnagar district in the past five months since the Congress came to power in December 2023 and exuded confidence that he will win with a majority of over one lakh this time.

Excerpts:

Q: The Congress last won the Mahbubnagar seat 20 years ago, with D. Vittal Rao. How can you expect to reverse the trend?

Political conditions have changed drastically in Mahbubnagar district in the past five months since the Congress came to power in December 2023. The Congress government is headed by Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, who hails from Mahbubnagar district. Revanth Reddy won from Kodangal which comes under the Mahbubnagar Lok Sabha constituency. This itself gives me the strength of 1,000 elephants. Moreover, the Congress bagged all the seven Assembly seats under the Mahbubnagar Lok Sabha constituency. This is an added advantage. Revanth Reddy and six other MLAs have taken the responsibility of ensuring one lakh majority this time.

Q: Who is your main rival?

A: The BJP and the BRS are not different. They are working together. For name’s sake, the BRS has renominated Manne Srinivas Reddy, the MP. BRS leaders and cadre are not campaigning seriously. They all are working together to ensure the BRS vote bank is transferred to the BJP. Both these parties entered into a shady deal to defeat the Congress, thinking that would weaken Revanth Reddy and, as a result, the Congress state government. But the people have decided to thwart their conspiracies. After nearly seven decades, a leader from Mahbubnagar district has got a chance to lead the state as Chief Minister and the people don't want to lose this golden opportunity of developing their district.

Q: The BJP has fielded D.K. Aruna, whose family enjoys strong political clout for decades and the BRS’ Srinivas Reddy is the incumbent MP. Where do you stand?

A: D.K. Aruna might have been MLA and minister, and Srinivas Reddy as MP but they did nothing for Mahbubnagar district in the last two decades. They failed miserably in providing irrigation and drinking water. Aruna joined the BJP from the Congress in 2019. But she failed to bring a single rupee from the BJP government at the Centre despite being BJP vice-president.

The BRS government was in power for 10 years. But it failed to complete the Palamuru-Rangareddy lift irrigation scheme, which is the lifeline of Mahbubnagar district. The BRS maintained friendly relations with the BJP government and supported all the controversial bills introduced by the Modi government. Despite this, the BRS failed to bring funds from the Centre for the Palamuru-Rangareddy project. There is collective anger of people in Mahbubnagar district against BJP and BRS which will fetch an easy victory for me.

Q: The Congress picked you in the very first list on March 8. You have been campaigning for two months. How is the response?

A: The people’s response has been very encouraging. Wherever I go, they tell me that the Congress is in power in the state and they want it to come to power at the Centre too. They feel that if the Congress is in power at both the Centre and the state, it will benefit Mahbubnagar district a lot. They are confident that Revanth Reddy, who hails from Mahbubnagar district will complete all pending projects, sanction more development works and funds and secure more funds from the Centre too for Mahabubnagar district. All these factors will contribute to my victory with a big majority this time.

Q: What are your priorities if you are elected as an MP?

A: My first and foremost priority is to provide irrigation facilities to every acre in the district. For this, the completion of the long-pending Palamuru-RR lift irrigation scheme is important. I will take the help of the Chief Minister for the speedy completion of this project. This will check migration from the district and boost the rural economy. I am confident that the Congress will come to power at the Centre in June which will enable it to secure more funds from the Centre for the speedy completion of the project. I want to bring investments and industries to Mahabubnagar district to create employment for students, youth and unemployed.