Declare Hindupur as separate district, Balakrishna writes to Jagan

Actor turned politician Balakrishna on Monday dashed off a letter to Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy with an appeal that Hindupur be declared a separate district.

With the Jagan government proposing to carve out new districts based on Parliamentary Constituency geographical limits, Balakrishna urged the Chief Minister to include Hindupur in the list of new districts. The YSRCP government had already sent out a signal that the number of districts will be increased from 13 to 25 for decentralisation and better administration.

Balakrishna, who represents Hindupur constituency as TDP MLA, also urged the Chief Minister to set up a medical college stating that it would help not just students from Hindupur but also benefit those from the entire Rayalaseema region. The Andhra Pradesh government had already announced to set up a new medical college in Hindupur

Hindupur has been a strong basiton of the TDP since the time of former Chief Minister and matinee idol N T Rama Rao, the illustrious father of Balakrishna. NTR, as he was popularly known, won thrice as MLA from Hindupur constituency. The NTR’s family held sway in Hindupur for three decades starting from NTR’s first victory in 1989. NTR’s elder son Nandamuri Hari Krishna was elected as MLA in 1996, while Balakrishna was elected twice as MLA in 2014 and 2019 Assembly elections.

Currently, Hindupur falls under the Anantapur district which is one of the four districts in Rayalseema region. The Andhra Pradesh government also seems to be in favour of making Hindupur as a separate district. It is learnt that the government is likely to create Anantapur and Hindupur parliamentary constituencies as two separate districts. Puttaparthi could become another district.

The Jagan is likely to announce new districts taking Lok Sabha constituencies as the basic eligibility for the creation of new districts. The controversial move to create new districts in Andhra Pradesh could hit a legal hurdle. Already, the government’s three capitals decision has hit a legal roadblock with different stakeholders filing cases against the move. Political observers have criticised the Jagan government’s move to create new districts based on Lok Sabha constituencies terming it a flawed policy.