Nellore: Keen contest is on the cards between YSRC party nominee and legislator Dr Anil Kumar Yadav and TD nominee and minister P. Narayana for the Nellore City Assembly segment in the ensuing elections.
Known as one among the few members close to TD chief Chandrababu Naidu, Narayana entered into active politics in 2014 and was named urban development minister in Mr Naidu's cabinet.
The CM offered him MLC post and entrusted the job of developing the capital city Amaravati. The minister's followers credit Narayana for thousands of houses built across the state under housing-for-all scheme besides all the development activities taking place in Amaravati.
Dr Anil Kumar, on the other hand, is a bachelor of dental surgery (BDS) who entered into politics as a Corporator. He ventured into mainline politics as Congress nominee for Nellore assembly seat in 2009. He, however, lost by a mere 90 votes to PRP nominee M. Sridharkrishna Reddy. Notwithstanding the defeat, he continued in Congress and was one among the few leaders who joined YSR Congress immediately after Jagan floated the party.
Dr Anil was elected to the Assembly on YSRC ticket with over 19,000 vote's majority from Nellore City segment in 2014. He has been banking on his services and easy accessibility to the constituents in Nellore City for the last 10 years. He maintains that Narayana is no match for him except where money power was concerned. He added that the popularity of Jagan among people would give the dentist an edge in the election.
Narayana, meanwhile, is confident that large scale development works including underground drainage and water supply improvement schemes he initiated in Nellore would ensure his victory. He reminds that all the works he launched in Nellore such as development of parks and roads are there for everyone to see.
Narayana's entire family including wife and daughters has been campaigning for him even before he filed nomination. He has devised an action plan to cover every household at least three to five times by him or his family members as well as TD leaders in the next 20 days.
Apart from Narayana and Dr Anil Kumar, a trader K. Jaganmohan Rao (BJP) and former Youth Congress leader Kethamreddy Vinod Reddy (Jana Sena) are also in the fray.
However the main battle would be between academician turned politician, Narayana and dentist turned politician Dr Anil Kumar Yadav.
Meanwhile Nellore City segment was emerged when the town was divided into two following delimitation of constituencies in 2009 and the first candidate to win was Anam Vivekananda Reddy.then and second one is Dr Anil Kumar Yadav in 2014.
