ANDHRA PRADESH NETA NATTER | Anam And The Three Votes He Did Not Get… In 2024

Some questions can get tricky. And may be best left unanswered, or rather, unasked. Endowments minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy experienced this situation during a chat with Reddy community members of Ponguru in Marripadu mandal, part of his Atmakur constituency. Anam who said he believes the voters from the community committed an error in the 2024 elections by casting their ballots for YSRC nominee Mekapati Vikram Reddy instead of him, the TD nominee. His question on why people supported the YSRC candidate just because he belonged to the Reddy community, ironically missed the point that both belonged to the same social group. Anam pointed out he lost the village by three votes, though he stressed that it did not matter at all — since he won the constituency by a margin of over 8,000 votes. Still, he felt the need to explain why the villagers were wrong. Incidentally, Anam was in the YSRC and joined the TD just before the elections, but that did not stop him from gently reminding the village folks that the government spends about `35 lakh every month on pensions in the village, along with other welfare schemes. But Anam did clarify that he would not stop any benefits, but only wanted people to stop thinking irrationally.

TD MLA turns delivery ‘boy’ for some food for thought

Online food delivery? Done. This did not come from those engaged by the companies but from Telugu Desam MLA from Penamaluru constituency, Bode Prasad, who, wearing the T-shirt of a food delivery platform and protective head gear, began delivering some orders. One family that received the package was shocked to realise it was the MLA at their door. Prasad, for good measure, did the same in areas such as Kanuru, Poranki, Yanamalakuduru and others. This, he later said, was to see firsthand the challenges and problems faced by delivery ‘boys’. Deliveries done, it was time for food for thought on the conditions the delivery personnel work under, with the MLA saying they work under severe pressure to deliver on time.

Adimulam in no man’s land for private videos

Left high and dry. That appears to be the case with Satyavedu MLA Koneti Adimulam’s political career. Listed as a legislator of the ruling Telugu Desam, his position within the party and the government system appears uncertain. Adimulam won the 2024 Assembly elections after securing a TD ticket at the last minute but, soon after, alleged private videos surfaced, causing embarrassment to the party which promptly suspended him. More troubles were in store for the former Congress and YSRC leader. Ever since his suspension, he has been complaining that officials no longer care about him, he gets left out of official programmes with protocol protocols being ignored. With his suspension leaving him isolated and party-appointed in-charges managing constituency affairs, and officials apparently taking directions from elsewhere, Adimulam, his detractors say, now has a lot of time on hand to figure out from where things first started going south for him.

Subhash finds he may have put a foot wrong

Dance when you can. But even that simple act can sometimes result in some extra attention as AP’s labour minister Vasamsetty Subhash appears to have discovered. During the Sankranti Sambaralu, the minister broke into a dance, something many around him watched askance. But Subhash was unfazed, and recalled how even CM N. Chandrababu Naidu and the Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan had previously joined to shake a leg, doing the Dhimsa with tribal women on their visits to the Agency areas.

Knock, knock: No one out on a survey

In the ASR district, the Unified Family Survey, supposedly a ‘significant’ government project, has found itself going slowly, much to the chagrin of the district parishad CEO Narayana Murthy. With officials apparently taking it easy with the survey with the pace bordering on a lazy siesta, Murthy voiced his frustration at a review meeting in Paderu and remine the staff that their job is not optional sightseeing but visiting every household and asking the 38 questions in the survey, warning of strict action if anyone continued to lag in this task. Whether Murthy’s warning produces more yawns among the staff asked to tour some salubrious sites as part of this work, or speeds up the survey, remains to be seen.

Vizag still paying for VIPs’ surf-and-turf hotel bills

When festivities come, so do the bills. After all, there are all those expenses, including what needs to be paid for hosting VIPs, politicians, and officers. But, with a never-say-die spirit, Vizag’s officialdom is ploughing on preparing for the next big festival in the city – the Visakha Utsav – with around `90 crore worth of bills still pending from past events such as the International Yoga Day, and Partnership Summit. If the whispers left behind by the crashing waves on Vizag’s sandy coast are anything to go by, a good chunk of these bills were thanks to officials, and elected representatives preferring accommodation in star hotels for the past events when perfectly acceptable rooms were available in government accommodations at Port Guest House, and government Circuit House, and the like.

Contributions from Md Ilyas, Sampat G. Samritan, Pathri Rajasekhar, Aruna, Vadrevu Srinivas, Avinash P. Subramanyam, K.M.P. Patnaik