Overshadowed by the Assembly elections to five States, for their likely influence on the national politics, are the two by-elections in Andhra Pradesh on May 8 — Kadapa Lok Sabha and Pulivendula Assembly constituencies — whose outcome will be no less significant for their impact on the future political dynamics of the State.
These elections have been caused by the resignations of Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy and his mother Vijayamma, son and wife respectively of the late Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy. They are out to prove the point that their mass appeal, albeit flowing out of the former Chief Minister's popularity and the sympathy generated by his death, is more than that of the Congress and the TDP.
To his own camp followers, Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy has to send out a strong message. Demonstrating his ability to pull crowds and to attract over two dozen MLAs into his fold was not enough. As a leader, he had to display his muscle at the hustings too. As a precursor to contesting the election from Kadapa and fielding his mother from Pulivendula (an Assembly segment of the Lok Sabha constituency), the 38-year-old former MP floated the YSR Congress Party.
After much procrastination, the Congress roped in Health Minister D.L. Ravindra Reddy to contest against Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy but faced no such difficulty in fielding Y.S. Vivekananda Reddy, younger brother of YSR, against Ms. Vijayamma, his sister-in-law. The TDP fielded a party heavyweight from Kadapa district and Rajya Sabha member M.V. Mysoora Reddy, for the Lok Sabha seat and, contrastingly, a nondescript partyman M. Ravindranath Reddy for Pulivendula.
In a district notorious for factionalism and violence, the late YSR remained the unchallenged leader for nearly three decades. For quite some time in his career, Dr. Ravindra Reddy and Dr. Mysoora Reddy, both medical graduates like YSR, were his comrades-in-arms in giving the then Chief Minister N.T. Rama Rao a torrid time in the Assembly. Now, these two leaders are fighting against the late leader's son.
The bitterness is showing. TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu was attacked with stones by people who tried to prevent him from entering a village. Both the Congress and the TDP have targeted Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy for his alleged accumulation of wealth in a short span of time and his overarching ambition to become Chief Minister. The YSR Congress leader attracted much attention when he declared in his affidavit that he owned assets worth Rs. 365 crore.
A key theme of the Congress campaign is that he is in cahoots with the BJP, clearly with an eye on the nearly two lakh Muslim votes in Kadapa. This is with reference to his close business links with Karnataka Tourism Minister and mine-owner Gali Janardhan Reddy.
The campaign largely revolves around the late YSR. Expectedly, Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy claims his father's political legacy. The Congress does not disown the leader and describes him as a staunch Congressman who rose to new heights, courtesy the party leadership in Delhi. On the other hand, the TDP has consistently attacked YSR for corruption and the Congress high command for going soft on Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy's businesses.
The by-elections are under the very close scrutiny of the Election Commission which has imposed unprecedented restrictions to prevent use of money and muscle power by the candidates. It has seized Rs. 4.24 crore in cash while police have ‘bound over' more than 10,000 persons since the past three weeks.
It is a do-or-die battle for Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy as much as it is for Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy.
