NDA suffers double blow in AP
The TDP-BJP combine suffered a double blow with the saffron party drawing blank and the regional party bagging just five seats in the Lok Sabha elections.
After a comprehensive drubbing in Assembly elections, the TDP-BJP combine suffered a double blow with the saffron party drawing blank and the regional party tottering at the lowest-ever tally of five seats in the Lok Sabha polls while Congress-TRS-left parties combine's juggernaut rolled across Andhra Pradesh bagging 36 out of a total of 42 seats.
In a complete whitewash for BJP in the home state of its President M Venkaiah Naidu, its candidates were trounced in all the nine constituencies that the party contested in alliance with TDP.
The defeated BJP leaders included Union Ministers Ch Vidyasagar Rao, who lost to TRS President Ch Vidyasagar Rao in Karimnagar, B Dattatreya (Secunderabad) and UR Krishnam Raju (Narsapur) and the state BJP President N Indrasena Reddy (Nalgonda). The party had seven members in the dissolved House.
In a reversal of the 1999 poll performance, a resurgent Congress bagged 29 Lok Sabha seats, compared to its previous tally of five, while Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP suffered rout managing to win only five seats, a steep fall from its previous tally of 29.
The fledgling TRS, facing elections for the first time in alliance with Congress, emerged victorious in five out of six seats it contested. The CPI and CPI (M) bagged Nalgonda and Bhadrachalam seats respectively.
The Telugu Desam Parliamentary Party leader K Yerran Naidu, who was injured in a naxalite attack in the run-up to elections, retained Srikakulam seat in north-coastal Andhra. Apart from Srikakulam, the TDP could manage to win Chittoor, the home district of Chandrababu Naidu, Ananakapalli, Bobbili and Nagarkurnool.
The key winners for Congress were AICC spokesman S Jaipal Reddy (Miryalguda), NTR's daughter D Purandareshwari who trounced noted Telugu film producer D Rama Naidu in Bapatla, firebrand leader Renuka Choudhary (Khammam), former Union Minister G Venkataswamy (Peddapalli), former Chief Minister N Janardhan Reddy (Visakhapatnam), industrialist Rajgopal (Vijayawada) and the Chief Minister-designate YS Rajasekhar Reddy's younger brother YS Vivekananda Reddy (Cuddapah).
Among the prominent losers for TDP were former Union Ministers U Venkateswarulu (Tenali) and B Bulli Ramaiah (Eluru) and deputy floor leader in the dissolved Lok Sabha S Venugopalachary (Adilabad).
Senior TRS leader A Narendra retained Medak seat, which had won on BJP ticket in the previous election. The Telangana party also emerged victorious in Adilabad, Karimnagar, Warangal and Hanamkonda while Nagarkurnool was the only constituency where it was defeated by TDP whose candidate M Jagannatham retained the seat.
The spectacular debut performance by TRS is sure to provide a fillip to its efforts towards realising the dream of separate Telangana state.
The rout that sent TDP packing in Assembly polls continued with the regional party managing to retain Srikakulam, Chittoor, Anakapalli and Nagarkurnool while wresting Bobbili from Congress. In all the remaining 28 seats that it contested, after leaving nine seats to its ally BJP, the party faced drubbing.
In the face of an opposition wave, the TDP could retain only Nagarkurnool in Telangana region which accounts for 16 Lok Sabha constituencies out of a total of 42 in the state.