Visakhapatnam: Since independence, no major political party in Andhra Pradesh has fielded women candidates for the Lok Sabha seats of Anantapur, Guntur, Hindupur, Machilipatnam, Nandyala and Ongole. No woman candidate ever won the polls from these constituencies.
From Narasapur and Ongole, two women from lesser-known parties tried for the seats, but failed.
Andhra Pradesh has 25 Lok Sabha seats. Four of these are reserved for SC (Scheduled Caste) and one for ST (Scheduled Tribe) candidates. The remaining 20 seats are unreserved.
The Election Commission’s data shows AP has an electorate of 3,99,84,868, with female voters outnumbering males at 2,02,21,455 and 1,97,59,489 respectively.
Women voters have a significant presence in each constituency. However, this presence is not reflected in the Lok Sabha. No woman from Anantapur, Guntur, Hindupur, Machilipatnam, Nandyala and Ongole has ever been elected.
Parliament represents the aspirations and concerns of its citizens.
However, there have been instances of women candidates entering the fray in other constituencies. In Rajampet and Tirupati, the BJP and TD fielded women candidates, albeit only once. In 2014, Rajampet YSRC contestant PV Midhun Reddy was challenged by Daggupati Purandeswari, representing BJP. She secured 426990 votes but lost the battle.
In 1996, TD gave Tirupati’s Lok Sabha ticket to Gali Rajasree, who secured 292406 votes but was defeated by Nelavala Subrahmanyam of the Congress.
In Narasapur, no major political party has given ticket to women since independence. However, Ganji Purnima, representing the Republican Party Of India (A), contested the polls there, got 865 votes and stood as the 14th runner-up. Similarly, for the Ongole Lok Sabha seat, Gogineni Bharati Devi, representing the SWA party, contested and secured 104703 votes but was defeated by P Ankineedu Prasada Rao of the Congress, who secured 284597 votes.
Andhra Pradesh still faces challenges in ensuring adequate representation of women candidates in Lok Sabha elections. Efforts to promote gender equality and encourage women’s participation remain crucial for a more balanced political landscape.
