Local body polls: Litmus test for new DCC chief Atram Suguna

Asifabad: For newly appointed Kumram Bheem District Congress Committee (DCC) president Atram Suguna, the upcoming local body elections are nothing short of baptism by fire as she on one hand will have to pacify discontented and sidelined leaders in the party and also put strong candidates to defeat nominees of upbeat opposition parties.

The party high command issued orders on November 22 appointing Suguna, who has also been serving as the joint district parliament in-charge, as the DCC president. Just three days after her appointment, on November 25, the Election Commission released the notification for the sarpanch elections. With only 20 days left before the elections, confusion has gripped the district Congress ranks.

Already, dissatisfaction is brewing among district Congress cadres over Suguna’s appointment. Many feel sidelined, as she is a relatively new entrant to the party, having joined only two years ago after resigning from her teaching post. Some argue that she is an outsider to the district, and question how much cooperation she will receive from senior leaders.

For the DCC president post, the high command had considered names including MLC Dande Vittal and senior Congress leader from Tiryani mandal, Anil Goud (from the BC community). However, the leadership leaned toward Suguna, considering her identity as a woman leader from the tribal community.

Now, within just three days of her appointment, Suguna faces the daunting challenge of securing a majority of sarpanch seats in the elections.

The district has 335 Panchayats in total—141 in Sirpur constituency and 194 in Asifabad constituency. Winning a majority depends heavily on careful candidate selection, a responsibility that rests squarely on Suguna’s shoulders.

Factionalism is already troubling the district Congress. In Asifabad constituency, sharp rivalry exists between constituency in-charge Shyam Naik and former DCC president Vishwaprasad Rao. Both factions are preparing to field their supporters in every Panchayat seat.

In Sirpur constituency, although factionalism is less intense, strong opposition poses a challenge. Former MLA Koneru Konappa, who recently defected from Congress to BRS, is working aggressively to ensure BRS-backed candidates win most sarpanch seats.

Meanwhile, BJP MLA Harish Babu is also preparing to assert his party’s strength by fielding candidates across Sirpur.

Despite Congress coming to power a year and a half ago, the party has struggled to establish a strong grip in rural areas. Farmers, in particular, show signs of discontent toward the government.

District leaders have failed to effectively implement government schemes at the grassroots level.

In this backdrop, questions arise about how far Suguna can overcome the adverse conditions within the district Congress. In tribal-dominated Asifabad, factionalism has become a major headache.

Only if Suguna manages to reconcile the groups led by Vishwaprasad and Shyam Naik, she can the party field strong candidates and hope for better results. Otherwise, if factions contest separately, the opposition BRS-backed candidates stand to benefit.

Additionally, Suguna must bring together senior leaders who were disappointed after being overlooked for the district president post. Failure to do so could result in Congress facing unfavorable outcomes in the Panchayat elections.