Graduate MLC polls campaign reaches peak in Chittoor, Nellore dists

Madanapalle/Nellore: The ruling YSRCP intensified its campaign for the Graduate MLC election in Chittoor district. Senior leader and Forest and Mines Minister Peddireddi Ramachandra Reddy, who is leading the campaign in Chittoor and Tirupati districts on Saturday, urged the party leaders in the two districts to work unitedly for the victory of party candidate P Syam Prasad Reddy. Peddireddi introduced the party candidate Syam Prasad at a meeting held with party leaders and activists of Punganur, Madanapalle, Thamballapalle and Piler constituencies in Madanapalle to gear up campaign for the MLC polls. Addressing the gathering, he said the party was fighting for the MLC poll for the first time after it came to power in 2019 and hence the party leaders and activists should take the election prestigiously and see the party candidate win the election with a huge margin. Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy declared Syam Prasad Reddy as candidate for Graduate MLC after the party leaders including MLAs, MPs from Chittoor, Nellore and Prakasam districts favoured his candidature, Peddireddi said while stressing that it was the responsibility of all to work for the party candidate's victory, keeping in view that private school teachers are also eligible voters for the election.

He wanted the MLAs to see that all the graduates in their constituencies were registered as voters and added that thanks to the fee reimbursement scheme introduced by late Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy, there were more graduates in every family to enroll for the election. Reddy said the leaders should also focus on the graduates, who were from the district but residing in cities like Bengaluru to enroll them as voters while seeking party leaders to work with the same vigour for Teachers MLC election also for the win of the party. Tamballapalle MLA Peddireddi Dwarakanadha Reddy said that the party

registered a thumping win in local bodies election and hoped that leaders from the area would ensure the party candidate win as Jagan liberally sanctioned many development initiatives for the constituency after the party came to power.

MLAs Chintala Ramachandra Reddy (Piler), Navaz Basha (Madanapalle), leaders from the four constituencies participated in the meeting. In Nellore, Indian Red Cross Society local branch chairman P Chandrasekhar Reddy is campaigning for East Rayalaseema Constituency under teacher's quota whereas Pernati Syam Prasad Reddy is conducting campaign for graduates' constituency from Nellore. Chandrasekhar Reddy is running several private colleges in the city and the ruling party picked him for the seat under the teacher's category. He has been active in the district since he was elected as chairman of the Red Cross local branch and there were rumours earlier that he would enter politics too. Confirming the speculations, he is now taking up campaign for the ensuing MLC polls from the ruling YSR Congress. Further, Pernati Syam Prasad Reddy has been close to Agriculture Minister K Govardhan Reddy and his wife, Pernati Hema Sushmitha, is now chairperson of AP State Seeds Development Corporation Limited. As Pernati Syam has good contacts with the ruling party leaders, it gave him green signal a couple of months ago and he met all important leaders in both Nellore and Tirupati districts of East Rayalaseema Constituency seeking support from them in the polls under the graduate's quota. TDP was also campaigning for Kancharla Srikant for the teachers' constituency. Progressive Democratic Front is in the fray and leader V Balasubrahmanyam declared Babu Reddy and Venkateswara Reddy as their candidates for the graduate and teacher's seats. Further, party leaders also focussed on the enrolment of new voters and directed the party's local leaders to collect details of new voters.