In Peddapalli Parliament reserved constituency, the contestants from three major parties – TRS, Congress and BJP – are new entrants and surprisingly, they all secured party tickets at the last minute.
TRS contestant Borlakunta Venkatesh Nethakani, a Group-I officer in Prohibition and Excise Department, quit his job last year to join politics. He contested the Assembly elections on Congress party ticket from Chennur segment in December 2018 and lost to TRS contestant Balka Suman. For Lok Sabha elections, he secured the ruling party ticket for Peddapalli Parliament constituency on the day he joined the TRS.
This move has come as a rude shock to former MP and industrialist G. Vivekanand, who expected to secure TRS ticket to contest the elections.
Congress contestant A. Chandrashekhar, a five-time legislator from Vikarabad Assembly segment who aspired to contest from Nagarkurnool Parliament seat, was given the Peddapalli Parliament ticket against the wishes of local aspirants Kavampalli Satyanarayana, former legislator Arepalli Mohan, former ZP Chairman Adluri Laxman Kumar and others. Denied ticket by Congress, Mr. Arepalli Mohan quit the party and joined the ruling TRS recently.
Similarly, the BJP has also fielded its party State secretary S. Kumar for the first time, by denying ticket to party senior leader Kasipeta Lingaiah. Mr. Kumar had earlier contested for Ramagundam Municipal Chairman post and had lost the 2009 Assembly elections from Dharmapuri SC reserved segment. A journalist-turned-politician from Godavarikhani coal belt region, he is the BJP’s State coordinator for Singareni Protection Committee.
In a first, the Lok Sabha elections for Peddapalli constituency is being held without the representation of political heavyweight G. Venkat Swamy or his family members in the last three decades. Senior Congress leader G. Venkat Swamy had won from the constituency in 1989, 1991 and 1996 and was re-elected in 2004.
All the three contestants are busy campaigning in the constituency. If TRS candidate is banking on the welfare and development schemes of the State government, the Congress candidate has pinned hopes on anti-incumbency factor as well as his credibility as a senior politician.
On the other hand, the BJP contestant has been seeking support from voters to develop the coal belt region under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Employment scheme
In the Parliament segment dominated by coal workers, the revival of dependent employment scheme for coal miners of Singareni, opening up of new underground mines and ancillary units to create employment for local youth and upgradation of the existing TSGenco Ramagundam B thermal power station are the main issues that are being focused on during the electioneering.
