Was it the toughest election for Chandrababu?
Did CM Chandrababu Naidu predict that he might have to clash with a bigger alliance of his enemies? Has Naidu stepped up his welfare agenda to the next level well in advance to counter this challenge? Undoubtedly, Naidu was seen giving greater priority to welfare though in a silent way. This was quite unusual for him who is known for his development initiatives. If Naidu remained the same leader prior to 2004, the present election would have been the toughest one for him to crack.
It was no easy task. CM Chandrasekhara Rao and PM Modi threw their whole weight behind Jaganmohan Reddy to defeat TDP more than making Jagan the chief minister of AP. TDP’s Andhra leaders were given big problems as their assets are located in Hyderabad. On the other hand, IT and CBI raids continued on TDP leaders in AP as well.
In his own words, Naidu said several times that what would have happened to the TDP if he had lost confidence because of these tactics of enemies. The opponents also tried to take advantage by catching Naidu unprepared to face the election. Prashant Kishor team was busy planning for YCP for many months well in advance. But it obviously had no impact as the TDP looked as always a well-prepared, strongly-built organisation under Naidu to weather any storm.
Re-polling likely at 6 polling stations in AP; Telangana polling peaceful
Polling at over six polling stations in Andhra Pradesh is likely to be re-held owing to technical glitches of electronic voting machines (EVMs) and violence at few polling stations. On the other hand, Lok Sabha elections in Telangana including Nizamabad constituency are peaceful. Still, long queues are visible at polling stations in Andhra Pradesh. Over polling turnout may cross 80 per cent, predicted AP Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Dwivedi.
Several polling stations in districts including Nellore, Kurnool, suffered from technical glitches of EVMs. Further, votes recorded during the mock poll were not deleted. Without deleting mock poll votes, the election process was commenced. This is the mistake by polling staff. The officials sent a detailed report on this to the EC.
Still, long queues are at polling stations. Voters are patiently standing in queues for over six hours. Voters are determined to cast their votes regardless of time spent in the queues. It’s estimated that polling turnout may cross 80 per cent in Andhra Pradesh, which had polls for 175 Assembly and 25 Lok Sabha constituencies.
“No booth capturing was reported in Telangana. Overall polling turnout in the state was 60.5 per cent. Polling percentage in Karimnagr was 68 per cent, Hyderabad 39 per cent. All the EVMs will reach reception center tonight, said Rajat Kumar, Telangana Chief Electoral Officer (CEO).
Congress hopes to win 10 MP seats in Telangana; BJP forecasts washout of Congress
Hyderabad: Telangana Congress party has exerted confidence of bagging 10 MP seats out of the 17 Lok Sabha constituencies in Telangana while criticising the Election Commission (EC) for not providing facilities at the polling stations. Telangana Lok Sabha elections recorded about 60 per cent voting turnout this time.
“We’re confident of winning 10 MP seats in Telangana. The Election Commission has supported the TRS totally. Farmers and Congress party demanded ballot paper in Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency as 185 candidates were in the fray. But, the EC ruled out our request and went ahead with electronic voting machines. The polling percentage in Telangana is below average and I attribute the reason to the failure of the EC,” maintained the RC Khuntia, Congress in-charge for Telangana.
On the other hand, BJP-Telangana president Dr K Laxman has predicted that Congress will be washed out from the state after this election.
“Only TRS and BJP will continue to be in action in the Telangana politics. People are positively responding to the call of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah to make Congress-free India. Elections in Telangana were peaceful and I thank all the party cadres of BJP and leaders. What I observe is that polling turnout is higher than Assembly elections and this indicates increased anti-incumbency against the TRS. BJP withdrew money from the bank with all genuine details, but the police department was overreacting to opposition parties in Telangana to impress KCR,” remarked Dr Laxman.
TDP fortunes rise in Nellore district – may win 4 out of 10?
At the beginning of the election campaign, the TDP had no big hopes in the Reddy-dominated Nellore district. Surveys said at that time that TDP may win only one or two seats out of the total 10 in the district. Over the past three weeks, things changed dramatically. The TDP is now in a strong position in four segments which are Nellore Town, Gudur, Kavali and Atmakur. The TDP has improved its prospects and it is giving a tough fight in Nellore Rural, Sarvepalli, Venkatagiri and Udayagiri. Now, analysts say that there are also chances for the TDP to win 5 to 6 seats.
The immediate reason for this latest scenario is that the backward classes and neutral voters are favouring TDP. The party has fielded BC leader Beeda Mastan Rao in Nellore Lok Sabha segment. This has polarised BC votes for the TDP. Moreover, the Muslim vote bank is supporting the TDP candidates. This is the reason why TDP candidate Abdul Aziz’s chances improved considerably in Nellore Rural segment despite YCP candidate Kotamreddy Sridhar Reddy’s strong supporters’ base here. In the changed scenario, TDP chances have also got a boost in Nellore MP seat. The voters are now comparing the characters of TDP Mastan Rao and YCP’s Adala Prabhakar Reddy. Adala is being branded as an unprincipled betrayer as he cheated TDP for joining YCP at the last minute.
Rs 116 crore cash seized so far in Andhra Pradesh
Authorities in Andhra Pradesh have seized over Rs 116 crore unaccounted cash across the state since the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) came into force, officials said on Wednesday.
The state, where simultaneous elections for Assembly and Lok Sabha are scheduled on Thursday, is ranked second after Tamil Nadu in terms of the cash seized.
“Only two states in the country have seen seizure of over Rs 100 crore cash and Andhra Pradesh is next only to Tamil Nadu,” said Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Gopal Krishna Dwivedi. He said this reflects the good job done by the election machinery in the state.
Besides the cash, the officials also seized 101 kg gold, 330 kg silver, 36,142 litres of liquor and 2,250 kg of ganja.
Other items like sarees, clocks and cricket kits, which were being carried for distribution as an inducement to voters, were also seized. They were valued at Rs 7.28 crore, the officials added.
KCR keen on AP outcome than MP seats in Telangana
Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao seems to be more keen on the outcome in Andhra Pradesh than Lok Sabha seats in Telangana. Since the election campaign concluded, KCR is spending more time on knowing brewing sentiment in the AP and impact of his support extended to Special Category Status (SCS) to the Andhra Pradesh.
TRS supremo on Tuesday concluded his election campaign focusing more on AP issues like special status and Polavaram project.
Addressing the last public meeting in Vikarabad, KCR spoke clearly whom he’s supporting and who’ll be the winner in AP elections highlighting the YSRCP chances. After initial support to YSRCP, KCR kept silence fearing a backlash in AP and this would benefit TDP on the lines how the pink party gained majority after Chandrababu Naidu campaigned in Telangana during Assembly elections held in December 2018.
The moment KCR announced his support to special status to AP, Chandrababu Naidu didn’t waste a minute to exploit the advantage of it by highlighting the undercurrent friendship of TRS and YSRCP. This has left confusion over who’ll benefit from KCR’s remarks. Political analysts are skeptical over guessing whether YSRCP or TDP.
TRS in Assembly elections won 88 MLA seats and immediately made it 90 as two independent MLAs joined the pink party. Later two TDP and eight Congress MLAs defected to TRS taking the total tally to 100. With this, TRS enjoys more than a comfortable position in the 119-seat Telangana Assembly. Now, TRS has set a target of winning 16 MP seats out of 17 in Telangana leaving one to its friendly party AIMIM.
Stage set for polls as campaigning ends in Telugu states
The stage is set for polling in all 42 Lok Sabha constituencies in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on Thursday even as campaigning came to an end Tuesday evening.
In Andhra Pradesh, voters will cast two votes each to elect 25 MPs and new members of the 175-strong Assembly, while in Telangana, the polling will be held only for 17 Lok Sabha seats.
A little over 3.93 crore voters in Andhra Pradesh are eligible to exercise their franchise to decide the fortunes of 319 candidates for the Lok Sabha seats and 2,118 in the Assembly polls.
Authorities have set up 45,920 polling stations, of which 9,000 booths are considered sensitive.
In their last-ditch effort to woo the voters, the leaders of various parties and candidates addressed meetings, conducted road shows or undertook door-to-door canvassing on Tuesday.
Chief Minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N.Chandrababu Naidu, YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) President Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy and Jana Sena leader and actor Pawan Kalyan addressed rallies.
Naidu’s son Nara Lokesh, who is contesting from Mangalagiri constituency in capital region Amaravati, campaigned along with his wife N. Brahmani.
Actors Allu Arjun and Varun Tej also campaigned for their uncle Pawan Kalyan on the last day.
In Telangana, canvassing in 13 Assembly segments in Maoist-affected areas ended at 4 p.m while in Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency, the parties were allowed to campaign till 6 p.m. In the rest of the state, the campaign ended at 5 p.m.
Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah addressed a rally in Hyderabad while the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi’s (TRS) Working President K. T. Rama Rao held road shows in Nalgonda constituency.
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi, who is seeking re-election for a fourth consecutive term from Hyderabad, addressed the last election meeting near the historic Charminar.
Nearly 2.97 crore voters will decide the fortunes of 443 candidates in the single-phase polling on Thursday.
Chief Electoral Officer Rajat Kumar said polling in 16 constituencies will be held from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. However, in 13 Maoist-affected Assembly segments bordering Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra, polling will end at 4 p.m.
In Nizamabad constituency, where a record number 185 candidates including 178 farmers are in fray, polling will begin at 8 a.m. and will end at 6 p.m. As the Election Commission is using 12 Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) in each polling booth, the officials will conduct mock-polling for two hours from 6 a.m. before opening the booths for voters.
The state has 34,603 polling stations including 5,749 sensitive stations.
Jitender, Additional Director General of Police, said the entire force of Telangana Police was deployed while sufficient forces were also mobilized from neighbouring states for free, fair and peaceful polling.
Besides 55,946 personnel of Telangana Police, 9,700 personnel from other states, 145 companies of central armed police forces and 25 companies of Telangana State Special Police were being deployed.
Police have made special arrangements in Maoist-affected areas. The official said poll boycott call by Maoists for last several decades got no support from citizens. “We believe this time too people will vote in large numbers,” he said.
The ADG said air ambulance and helicopters were being arranged at the strategic locations in consultation with the CEO for any contingency.
KCR’s anti-AP comments did irreversible damage to Jagan?
Two days before polling day, CM Chandrababu Naidu gave a masterstroke to his main opponent YS Jaganmohan Reddy. Naidu totally changed his tactic and began attacking KCR on the issue of Polavaram and special status. Naidu is highlighting the KCR-Jagan secret deal taking political advantage of Jagan’s recent comments defending KCR and Modi. The TDP boss quickly used this chance to the maximum extent to provoke anti-KCR sentiment among the AP voters.
Regarding the YCP prospects, the anti-AP and anti-Polavaram comments made by TRS leaders during electioneering did maximum damage to Jagan. Now KCR is speaking positively on Polavaram project but it is too late. Naidu has already taken his campaign against KCR factor effectively into the voters. Moreover, AP voters can never forget how KCR spoke abusively against them. It’s even more unforgettable how KCR continued his anti-Andhra stance to provoke and attract Telangana voters in 2018 poll. All said and done, Jagan made a tactical blunder by speaking favourably about KCR at a crucial time like an election campaign. It’s but natural the Andhra sentiment will have its impact just as the Telangana sentiment proved useful for KCR twice ie in 2014 and 2018.
Voting time revised for Nizamabad MP election
The Telangana Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) has revised poll timing for Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency thanks to the lengthy list of 185 contesting candidates. According to the revised timing, the polling at 1,788 polling stations in Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency will be held from 8 am till 6 pm on April 11, while normal timing of 7-5 will continue in the remaining polling stations across Telangana. However, polling will be from 7 am till 4 pm at 17 Maoist –affected areas at select polling stations in 13 Assembly segments.
Telangana CEO Rajat Kumar said that decision to revise polling time has been taken after the mock polling. Generally, mock polling would be completed in one hour, but it took extra time as the lengthy list of 185 candidates in the Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency, said Rajat Kumar.
“So, extra time is given to complete the process. The revising timing at 1,788 polling stations in Nizamabad MP poll will be from 8 am till 6 pm,” further added Rajat Kumar.
In addition to politicians, farmers of turmeric and jowar in large numbers filed nominations for Nizamabad Lok Sabha seat in protest against non-implementation of minimum support price (MSP). Several farmers have demanded the postponement of the elections for Nizamabad seat. However, the Chief Election Commission of India (ECI) didn’t agree to the request and has decided to go ahead with election schedule on April 11.
Sitting MP Kalvakuntla Kavitha, daughter of Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, is contesting in Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency.
Is Congress really serious of dislodging Narendra Modi
Is Congress really serious of dislodging Narendra Modi? The question may sound baffling as the Congress despite its erosion still remains the principal political force that can challenge saffron juggernaut. But, series of developments in the recent past culminating in party President choosing Kerala for his second parliamentary constituency have given credence to this suspicion on the seriousness of the grand old party in dislodging the BJP at least in 2019.
First, let’s analyse the implications of Rahul Gandhi deciding to contest from Wayanad in Kerala besides Amethi. The congress defence is to assuage feelings of South Indian hurt in the Modi dispensation. Even if one agrees with this logic, then why not Karnataka, a much safer state at a time when the Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) form a formidable anti-BJP alliance. In fact, the Karnataka state congress extended an invitation to Rahul Gandhi to stand for Loksabha from this state. In case if Congress has agreed to this request, he would have been in a straight contest with BJP in both the constituencies. Instead, Rahul Gandhi chose Wayanad where the Left is his principal rival, not the BJP. Rahul Gandhi sent a confusing political message by fighting his ally, the Communist Party of India (CPI) in Wayanad. The CPI is part of the Congress-led alliance in the recent Assembly elections in Telangana. The CPI has already indicated its resolve to join the Congress-led anti-BJP post-poll alliance through its senior left partner CPI (M) is divided on having any relationship with Congress.
Besides, at a time when Rahul Gandhi is supposed to lead a secular opposition fight against Narendra Modi, the Congress chooses a constituency dominated by minority voters giving the saffron brigade unprecedented ammunition to attack it.
Rahul Gandhi chose to fight from two constituencies at a time when there is an increasing perception and even ground reports that the Congress President has to face anxious moments in the hands of BJP’s Smriti Irani. This too robs Congress of its claims that the party revived its political fortunes in the Hindi heart land subsequent to the party victory in three state elections Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
Not in just Kerala, the Congress did not favourably respond to the Left offer of a truce in West Bengal too. The CPI(M) offered no mutual contest formula at least in the four seats won by the Congress and the two seats won by the CPI(M) in 2014. The Congress stood second in another six seats. Any patch up with the left would have helped congress to win at least eight to ten seats in this crucial state of West Bengal. But, the Congress arrogantly refused to have any understanding with the Left jeopardising not just its chances but the chances of even the Left whose MPs would have contributed to the strongest opposition to the BJP’s attempts to retain power at the centre.
In a similar show of political foolhardiness, the Congress rejected the offer of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. The AAP offered to contest the Delhi seat together with the Congress. This would have meant a clean sweep of all the seven Delhi seats by the opposition. The Congress got decimated from Delhi in the last Assembly and Lok Sabha elections with AAP emerging stronger. The AAP successfully decimated BJP in the last Assembly polls negating the gains the saffron party attained in 2014 Lok Sabha polls in the wake of Modi wave sweeping North India. There are no signs of Congress revival in the national capital. Still, the Congress chose to fight with BJP and the AAP giving Modi a clear advantage.
In India’s largest state of Uttar Pradesh, the Congress is not part of the Mahagatbandhan comprising of SP, BSP and the RLD. The by-elections in Gorakhpur and Phulpur revealed that the SP-BSP combine can defeat the BJP even without the Congress. But, the Congress joining the opposition grand alliance would have further reassured the anti-BJP forces. Unless there is a clandestine deal to have a strategic contest, the Congress has certainly caused irreparable damage to the anti-BJP struggle in a state that sends as many as 80 seats to the Loksabha.
Thus picking up a quarrel with the Left, AAP, SP and the BSP, the Congress lost the perception battle much before the voter pressed the EVM button. On the contrary, the Modi-Shah led BJP has dextrously handled the complex alliance making exercise in both Bihar and Maharashtra. The manner in which the BJP reached out to its ever critical ally, Shiv Sena in Maharashtra indicate the sincerity with which the BJP attempted political alignments. In Bihar too, the BJP sacrificed its sitting seat to accommodate its key ally, the Janata Dal(United ), while the Congress still remains comfortable in its world of false calculation that has no relationship with the political reality on the ground.
Thus, the Congress politics of self imposed isolationism has not only disrupted the pre-poll arithmetic crucial for forming strong anti BJP coalitions in different states but even compromised the party’s capability to rope in maximum number of friends in post-poll manoeuvring as every poll prediction hints at the possibility of neither the BJP nor the Congress able to win the majority on its own.
( Prof.K. Nageshwar is India’s noted political analyst. He is a former member of the Telangana Legislative Council and professor in the Department of Communication & Journalism, Osmania University, Hyderabad, India )
ECI is a puppet in PM Modi’s hands, says actor Sivaji
Actor-turned-activist Sivaji has taken strong objection to the sudden change of AP chief secretary. The Election Commission of India (ECI) has transferred Anil Chandra Punetha and brought in LV Subrahmanyam in his place. All top officials were surprised as this transfer came just five days prior to the general election. Sivaji says this is just one of the many deeper conspiracies being hatched by PM Modi and Amit Shah to manipulate the AP election.
Sivaji said he has got evidence of the cheap conspiracies of Modi to destroy the Telugu Desam Party in the state. He asserted that there is no doubt the ECI has become just a puppet in the hands of Modi. There are allegations that the national election officials have never compromised their positions like this before.
The TDP leaders are saying that the audio tapes of Vijayasai Reddy have also disclosed how PM Modi has forced the ECI to dance to the tunes of YCP leaders in AP. CM Naidu has been alerting his party leaders and think tank to remain on high alert to foil any attempt by YCP and BJP to tamper with the election process in collusion with the ECI.
Highlights – Naidu releases TDP manifesto
CM Chandrababu Naidu released manifesto on the auspicious day of Telugu Ugadi. The basic spirit is NTR’s slogan of ‘Society is the the temple and poor people are gods’. The manifesto main attractions are:
– Tenant farmers to get Annadata Sukhibhava benefits
– Pasupu Kumkuma Rs 10,000 to DWCRA women every year
– Old age and other pensions to be hiked to Rs 3000
– Chandranna Beema of Rs 10 lakh for all
– Total water security thru inter-linking of 140 rivers and streams
– Horticulture 40,000 acres to 1 crore acres
– 12-hour power supply to agriculture
– Waiver of bank loans under NTR Housing for poor 12 lakh beneficiaries
– Rs 2 lakh minimum income assurance for poor families
– Unemployment allowance from intermediate level
– Priority to IT hubs for knowledge economy
– Petro-chemical corridor in Kakinada
– Mega textile parks to create 3 lakh jobs
– Innovation hubs in municipal corporations
– Medical treatment free and health tourism
– Coastal highway for 794 kms
– CPS employees scheme cancellation
– Job security to contract employees
– Online clearances as part of good governance
Gabbar Singh comedian batch better than many other heroes?
This is the debate going on among fans of Pawan Kalyan now. After seeing most of the heroes, who used to say they are hardcore fans of Pawan Kalyan, shying away to support Pawan’s Janasena party.
It all started with actor Nikhil campaigning for TDP leader Prathap. Janasena fans questioned Nikhil in social media about his earlier statements that he is a fan of Pawan Kalyan. Later, Nikhil clarified that he is not supporting TDP party as a whole and he is not a political person but he just campaigned for his uncle. However, Janasena fans are disappointed with other actors like Nitin, Saptagiri etc, whose audio functions Pawan Kalyan attended without expecting anything in return from them. Many actors in the industry say, they are diehard fans of Pawan Kalyan but they didn’t even tweet in support of Pawan Kalyan at this crucial juncture – say the fans. At the same time, they are appreciating comedian team of Gabbar Singh movie, who are voluntarily campaigning for Janasena party as a token of gratitude for the name and fame they got from the Gabbar Singh movie.
Of course, the campaign by movie stars may not really help a political party get votes or seats, but fans of Janasena are just watching whether the previous statements given by those actors about Pawan matching their current actions or not.
Firstpost CNN survey – it’s pro-TDP government wave
Yet another poll survey has given its results indicating a positive election scenario for the TDP in AP. The Firstpost and CNN News 18 National Trust survey showed that 75.8 per cent Andhra people have expressed their satisfaction with the Chandrababu Naidu government in the past five years. This has revealed the impact of the TDP welfare intensive agenda especially focused on the DWCRA women’s groups.
The Firstpost survey has also acknowledged the findings that there’s no strong anti-incumbency factor against Chandrababu Naidu and also the fact that the welfare programmes have emerged as a major plank for the TDP. The survey has disclosed that the KCR government in Telangana has won just 67.6 per cent satisfaction of the voters there.
The people’s satisfaction level on the Kumaraswamy government in Karnataka is only 46 per cent and it’s 78 per cent for the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh. Analysts say that when AP and Telangana performances are compared, it’s clear the TRS lower satisfaction will be an advantage electorally for the TDP in Andhra. The AP voters are well aware of Jagan-KCR secret deals.
Poll speeches hit a new low – Kanna’s attack on Naidu
The Bharatiya Janata Party is known for its smart election strategies to polarise the Hindu community votes in its favour. BJP AP President Kanna Lakshminarayana has begun using the strategy more effectively. In the process, he is giving indications on how the Muslim vote bank is totally supporting the TDP this time. In his election speeches, Kanna says that a vote for Chandrababu Naidu is a vote for Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Kanna has not stopped at that. His contention is that a vote for Naidu is a vote for separatists like Jammu and Kashmir leader Farooq Abdullah. These heavily loaded remarks have triggered a political controversy in the state. It is clear from this how the rival parties have secured their vote banks to win the election.
The desperation of BJP leaders is understandable as the party is not able to get support from the public despite all-out efforts to highlight PM Modi’s achievements. The BJP and YCP are now worried on how to fill the gap resulting from the Muslim vote bank moving closer to the TDP. BJP is bent upon splitting the Hindu vote bank so as to hurt the TDP chances and benefit Jaganmohan Reddy.
Heavy crowds of fans – Will it help Pawan?
As expected, youth and fans are attending the election meetings of Pawan Kalyan in very big numbers. They are also making a lot of noise that it is proving to be a hurdle for smooth conduct of his meetings. The loud sloganeering of these fans is often obstructing the speech delivery of their Senani. The question now is whether this youth following will effectively translate into the vote on the polling day.
It is Pawan’s strong hope that his party will play a key role in government formation in the State. He has even mentioned in his speeches that he has chances of becoming CM just like in Karnataka where Kumara Swamy became CM with very low numbers. But for this, Jana Sena has to reach double digit.
Many poll surveys are coming out these days. Most of them are not even making any reference to Pawan Kalyan factor. One or two have given just 2 to 5 MLA seats for Jana Sena. The situation is really hopeless for BJP and Congress as Andhra voters are punishing them for the injustice done to AP before and after reorganisation. So, totally it is a game being played by regional parties in AP polls. Analysts say the youth vote bank is not organised like the regular party or caste vote banks. It cannot be predicted whether Pawan can safely depend on the young voters as of now.
News X poll survey – 92 for TDP and 77 for YCP
The ongoing election surveys have raised anxiety levels among political parties and two major contenders for power. The News X poll survey has given its latest results. It has given 92 assembly seats for TDP, which is exactly 10 seats below its tally in 2014 election. This may be the direct impact of TDP contesting alone without any pact with other parties. TDP had a tie-up with BJP and Pawan Kalyan in 2014.
The survey gave 77 seats for YCP, which means 10 seats higher than in 2014. In the Lok Sabha polls also, the survey gave 16 seats to TDP while the YCP would get 9 seats. The TDP may get a vote share of 40 per cent with YCP getting 37 per cent. Interestingly, it has not talked about Pawan Kalyan of Jana Sena Party. But it has given nearly 9 per cent vote share for Congress which will win nearly 4 assembly seats as against a blank in 2014. But the Congress will not win any Lok Sabha seat just like the BJP.
The survey gives an upper hand for TDP in respondents’ choice of CM. As many as 46 per cent supported Chandrababu Naidu for CM while 37 per cent voted for Jaganmohan Reddy as CM. TDP circles say they will get fare more seats compared to the survey projections.
Mayawati questions how can KCR be CM, when 70% Telangana is backward?
SC, ST, OBC and minorities in Telangana account for about 90 per cent population, then how can TRS supremo K Chandrashekhar Rao become chief minister as his community ‘Velama’ not even one per cent, questions BSP chief Mayawati, while calling upon the marginalised communities to fight for their due share in power politics.
Mayawati, who served as CM of Utter Pradesh (UP) for four times, along with Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan addressed at a public meeting organized at LB Stadium in the city.
“Only leaders from communities that account for 1.5-2 per cent are ruling the state. But, SC, ST and BCs account for 70 per cent and they’re not included in the mainstream politics. KCR from Velama caste and it doesn’t comprise just one per cent of the total population. Telangana population comprises more marginalized castes and I call upon all these communities to fight for their reasonable share in the power politics. After formation of statehood, the socio-economic conditions of SC, ST, OBC and minorities have not changed much,” observed Mayawati.
The former UP chief minister has further asked Telanganites not to fall for fake poll promises of BJP and Congress.
Meanwhile, Pawan Kalyan has asked KCR not to meddle in AP politics, while requesting the Telangana chief minister not to have any hatred towards Andhraites. “I would like to see Mayawati as Prime Minister of India. Now, the time has come for India to have a Dalit PM. From this dais, I request KCR to spare Andhraites in his fight with AP chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu,” remarked Pawan Kalyan.
