Crowded contest at country’s biggest constituency

Eyeing a role at the national level, former IAS officer Jayprakash Narayan first shifted to this large Seemandhra pocket in Telangana as bifurcation of the state became imminent. JP, as he is fondly known as, is sitting MLA from Kukatpally which is an enclave of coastal Andhra people in Hyderabad and where he enjoys immense support and popularity.

Controversial retired IPS officer V Dinesh Reddy who joined the YSR Congress Party on Monday was immediately nominated by Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy from the constituency. Dinesh Reddy retired as DGP of undivided state on September 30 last.

No wonder with all parties looking for ‘winnable’ candidates, announcing nominees for this crucial constituency had been withheld till the last minute.

TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu tried to persuade JP to withdraw from Malkajgiri but as soon as the TDP tied up with the BJP, JP and his Lok Satta Party decided not to tie-up with the TDP, and contest alone. The TDP announced J Malla Reddy’s name in the wee hours of Wednesday.

The Malkajgiri constituency came into existence only in 2008 after delimitation and in the first election held here in 2009, Congress’s Sarvey Satyanarayana, the Union Minister of State for Road Transport, was elected. Although, there were 23,43,050 voters in 2009, only 50 per cent voted which is a major worry for candidates. Sarve Satyanaryana won in 2009 with a margin of 93,326 votes as TDP’s T Bhimsen gave him a tough fight. But Telangana and state bifurcation was not an issue in 2009 and there was a very strong pro-Y S Rajasekhara Reddy sentiment. However, things have changed drastically since then.

“I think people will not vote emotionally this time. They will support a candidate and party who will ensure that basic infrastructure is provided to us. We want better roads and other civic infrastructure. Water supply is our biggest problem. Public transport facilities have to be improved,’’ says, N Satyanarayana, who works with a cooperative bank near the municipal office.

Sudhakiran Rao is a medical doctor by profession. He is the son of Narasimha Rao’s eldest daughter Sharada Venkat Rao. Rao says his grandfather was a down-to-earth and humble man. “He was an aam aadmi. My thoughts and philosophy of public service matches with that of AAP that is why I am working with it,’’ Rao says. He came in at the last minute after AAP’s first choice Chandana Chakrabarti opted out on Monday citing health reasons. Rao has volunteered to work with several organisations, including the Red Cross.