ANANTAPUR: In an embarrassing turn-for-the-worse for the Telugu Desam in Anantapur district, a stronghold for the party for 35 years, there are massive defections to the ruling YSRC. This is happening as the party high command is keeping itself aloof from the local body polls to the zilla parishads and mandal parishads in 63 mandals.
The high command’s non-involvement is forcing candidates and leaders to take their own decisions or shift their allegiance to the ruling party.
In Hindupur, several MPTC candidates were shifting loyalties to the YSRC while the local leadership has no clarity about the high command call for boycotting the polls. A group of MPTC candidates joined the YSRC though their candidatures were finalised by the film star and local MLA Nandamuri Balakrishna. As the TD already lost a majority of the gram panchayats and the Hindupur municipality, the mandal-level leaders were thrown into a state of confusion.
However, the YSRC leadership is seeing this as an opportunity to attract more of the TD candidates.
Meanwhile, none of the 63 ZPTC members were unanimously elected. Despite the boycott, Telugu Desam candidates were in the fray in all the mandals as they had filed their nominations a few months ago. A majority of the in-charges and representatives like MLAs, MLCs and other leaders have strong bases in their villages and they fielded candidates. The abrupt boycott decision announced by TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu caused confusion to the party leaders.
Interestingly, Tadipathri municipal chairman JC Prabhakar Reddy announced his support to CPIM and CPI candidates in Tadipathri area. "As our party leader Chandrababu Naidu’s decision should be obeyed, our party members are not participating in the polls. I extend my support to the CPIM and CPI in Tadipathri," Reddy announced.
Meanwhile, the TD unit in Visakhapatnam district suffered a setback after several of its top leaders in Bheemili assembly segment joined the ruling YSRC in the presence of Minister for Tourism Muttasetti Srinivasa Rao at his residence in Bheemili on Tuesday.
The leaders included former MPP of Padmanabham mandal, Kalla Padma, her husband and mandal president Kalla Nagesh, the present MPTC candidate Kalla Satyavati and several other MPTC candidates.
Incidentally, TD won five out of the nine divisions in the GVMC corporation under Bhimili assembly constituency in the elections held last month. This segment is said to be a stronghold of the TD. Muttamsetti Srinivasa Rao defeated TD candidate Sabbam Hari with a margin of 3,000 votes in the 2019 general elections.
The others include MPTC candidates of Potnuru, Kovvada, Maddi, Tunivalasa and two panchayat vice presidents. Earlier, several leaders from Anandapuram, Bhimili and Padmanabham joined the ruling party.
There was an influx to the YSRC in Narsipatnam assembly constituency, said to be a bastion of former minister and politburo member of TD Ch Ayyanna Patrudu. Several senior TD leaders joined the YSRC on Tuesday. Those who contested for grama panchayats elections from Natavaram, Makavarapalem and Golugonda mandals along with hundreds of activists joined the YSRC in the presence of local MLA Petla Umashankar Ganesh.
State minister Srinivasa Rao welcomed all these leaders by presenting them with the party shawls.
“It is a good development for the Bheemili constituency. TD was destroyed due to the promotion of self-interests by Chandrababu Naidu,’’ Srinivasa Rao said.
