Vijayawada Lok Sabha :
Brothers are rivals in election battle–Chinni achieves politically upper hand
Sujana and Kolikapudi are new attractions this time
Patibandla Srinivas
Amaravati: Vijayawada Lok Sabha which is always a hot seat in Andhra Pradesh politics. The MP whoever is elected from the Vijayawada Lok Sabha Constituency that member will get special recognition in the history of the Indian parliament.
Several prominent leaders like Parvathaneni Upendra (Congress), Vadde Shobanadreswara Rao (TDP), Chennupati Vidya, Lagadapati Rajagopal (Congress), Gadde Rammohan, Kesineni Srinivas (TDP), Kanuri Lakshmana Rao, G Murahari, K Atchamamba (Congress) and Harindranath Chattopadhyay (Independent) were elected from Vijayawada Lok Sabha so far.
Interestingly in the first election, the voters of Vijayawada elected independent candidate Harindranth Chatopadyaya who is a brother of legendary Sarojani Naidu. When the two strong Left parties supported his candidature.
There is an interesting similarity in the present politics in Vijayawada Lok Sabha. Then industrialist-turned-politician Lagadapati Rajagopal got a seat from his uncle two-term MP Parvathaneni Upendra though he was keen to continue in politics. Now the scene reversed and TDP candidate Kesineni Sivanath (Chinni) entered TDP politics in the place of his brother two-term sitting MP Kesineni Srinivas.
Kesineni Srinivas had an interest in continuing in TDP but his attitude upset not only the mood of the party cadre but top leadership also. Indeed, the TDP leadership has given more than one chance to Kesineni Srinivas to contest from TDP two terms though several prominent personalities were interested in Vijayawada Lok Sabha. It is an open secret that his attitude against the party and his rude comments created a headache for the leadership.
After observing the mood of TDP leadership, several leaders have shifted their focus to replace Kesineni. Following the developments, Kesineni Sivanath (Chinni) entered the election fray to replace his brother’s position. He has very good respect for the party leadership, especially admiration for TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu.
He took part in Nara Lokesh’s yuvagalam programme. He spent huge funds service activities during the last two years. Since then the rank and file of TDP in the entire Vijayawada Lok Sabha including the majority of MLAs started moving with Kesineni Sivanath.
During the period, MP Kesineni Srinivas also tried to set right the situation in TDP but finally, his younger brother Sivanath got the upper hand and became the candidate of TDP for Vijayawada Lok Sabha.
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Presently Sivanath is confident about his winning chances due to Vijayawada Lok Sabha being a very good seat for TDP in the present conditions. The majority of people of Lok Sabha are angry after the YSR Congress government halted the construction works of Amaravati capital. It is more visible in city limits in various aspects.
Besides, the TDP candidates for Assembly under the purview of Vijayawada are strong contenders. TDP MLA candidates Gadde Rammohan (Vijayawada East), Bonda Umamaheswara Rao (Vijayawada Central), Vasanta Krishna Prasad (Mylavaram), Tangirala Soumya (Nandigama), Sriram Rajagopal (Jagaiahpet) have good prospects.
YSR Congress Vijayawada East candidate Devineni Avinash is working hard by using his father Devineni Nehru’s legacy but the traditional voting pattern majority Kamma-Kapu voters’ strength helps Rammohan and MP candidate Kesineni Sivanath. There are a bit internal problems in the Nandigama constituency which is traditionally TDP’s favourable seat.
Former Union Minister Y Sujana Chowdary and Amaravati JAC leader Kolikapudi Srinivas are contesting in the strong seats of the YSR Congress. As per the ground reports, both leaders improved their prospects. YS Sujana Chowdary who took a daring step to contest in the bastion of the YSR Congress is impressively working for his election. He has confidence that the city-based voters will give him a mandate in his favor.
Moreover, he stands as one of the backbones of Amaravati’s capital protection agitation. So he improved his chance to win the battle. Similarly, Amaravati JAC convener Kolikapudi Srinivas is contesting from Tiruvuru but the seat was originally a favorable for YSR Congress. Even though he improved his chances but the developments in the coming week will be crucial in the rural constituency.
However, Kesineni Sivanath is confident about his election due to the majority constituencies traditionally TDP-strong seats along with anti-incumbency factors. MP Kesineni Srinivas had a good image in the past but he lost by making comments against Amaravati capital.
