GD Nellore results expose cracks in TDP’s local leadership

Tirupati: While Telugu Desam swept much of Chittoor district, its setback in Gangadhara Nellore has triggered an internal blame game, with factional rivalries and questions over MLA Thomas’s leadership coming under scrutiny.

YSRCP won four ZPTC seats in the district and secured a majority of MPTC seats in three mandals, enabling it to claim the corresponding mandal parishad president posts. Significantly, all these gains came from Gangadhara Nellore Assembly constituency, the only segment where the ruling alliance failed to replicate its performance elsewhere in the district.

Within TDP, the defeat has been attributed to factional differences and resentment among party workers over the functioning of MLA VM Thomas. Party leaders said two or three rival groups operated in each of the six mandals in the constituency. They alleged that members of one group did not actively campaign for candidates backed by another, weakening the alliance’s electoral prospects.

There are also allegations that some TDP leaders reached an understanding with their YSRCP counterparts ahead of the elections, keeping the forthcoming gram panchayat polls in mind. According to these reports, the leaders allegedly agreed to allow YSRCP to win in the present elections in return for its support in sarpanch polls. The claims have further fuelled concerns over coordination and unity within the ruling party.

The MLA’s alleged lack of availability in the constituency and his style of functioning have also caused dissatisfaction among local leaders and party workers, according to party sources. Some leaders are unhappy that those who defected to the TDP from the YSRCP have found a place in the MLA’s inner circle.

They also alleged that Thomas did not adequately consult local leaders while selecting candidates. TDP leaders believe the outcome could have been different had the MLA taken local leaders into confidence before finalising the nominees. The lack of coordination was particularly evident in Penumuru, traditionally considered a TDP stronghold, where the party lost both the ZPTC and MPP posts.

There were allegations that constituency- and mandal-level leaders failed to extend support to TDP ZPTC candidate Karjala Aruna in Penumuru. YSRCP secured the MPTC and ZPTC posts in Vedurukuppam and SR Puram mandals. It also won ZPTC seat in Karvetinagaram.

The narrow victory margin in Gangadhara Nellore has added to the concerns within the TDP. Its candidate for ZPTC seat won by just 304 votes, indicating the extent of the electoral challenge faced by the party even in areas where it managed to retain an advantage.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Pradeep Vennelakanti

[email protected]