Congress to become headless in Nellore?

Nellore: The Congress party in Nellore is going to become an empty house with leadership crisis as DCC president Panabaka Krishnaiah, his wife and former Union Minister Panabaka Lakshmi deciding to shift their loyalty to the ruling TDP.

Congress party which had become nominal after the State bifurcation is now facing another problem of lacking leadership at the time of polls. In fact, the party had ruled the roost in the district since 1955, except in 1967 polls, with thumping majority till 1989.

There were 11 Assembly constituencies in the district and the number reduced to 10 after reorganisation in 2009. The 1994 and 1999 polls witnessed huge influence of Telugu Desam where the party bagged majority seats.

Former Chief Ministers Bezawada Gopal Reddy and Nedurumalli Janardhan Reddy had represented the Congress party from the district. Anam family also is basically from the Congress party.

However in 2009, the Congress party secured victory only in 4 seats and it has become zero in 2014 polls as its new wing, YSR Congress, started taking over traditional votes of the Congress party.

Subsequently, Nellore district, the erstwhile strong bastion of the Congress, had become headless. Later, the Congress party appointed a fresh District Congress Committee under the leadership of former IRTS officer P Krishnaiah who contested from Gudur and lost the polls twice.

Krishnaiah has been running the party ever since and organising party activities in the district.

Now again the Congress is going to become headless in Nellore as Panabaka Krishnaiah is quitting the party along with his wife and former Union Minister Lakshmi as the ruling party offered Tirupati Lok Sabha seat for his wife and Sullurpet Assembly constituency to him.The Congress thus suffered a huge blow in the district with the couple deciding to leave the party.