Is it the end of road for many TDP leaders in Guntur district? This question is agitating the minds of party men shocked by the humiliating defeat in the general elections. The district, considered as a stronghold for the party since 1983, could witness a change of guard in the future.
Senior leaders like former Assembly Speaker Kodela Siva Prasada Rao, Prathipati Pulla Rao, Alapati Rajendra Prasad, Dhullipalla Narendra Kumar, Yerapathaneni Srinivasa Rao lost by huge margins in their constituencies indicating the tremendous wave of anti-incumbency. The biggest shock is the defeat of Nara Lokesh from Mangalagiri at the hands of Alla Ramakrishna Reddy. The party could however take some solace in the victory in the Guntur Lok Sabha constituency and the Guntur West Assembly segment.
A wave of allegations of rampant corruption, nepotism against the MLAs, the functioning of the Janmabhoomi committees and the inefficiency of the administrative machinery to ground the welfare schemes seem to have gone against the TDP.
In Palnadu, allegations of illegal mining of white limestone surfaced soon after the results in 2014.
Even after the High Court took serious note of the activity, it went on unabated in the Dachepalli and Piduguralla areas . Senior leaders like Dr. Siva Prasada Rao faced allegations of family interference in administration. Dr. Rao’s son Sivaram has been at the centre of controversy in the Sattenapalli and Narsaraopet segments.
CM-designate Jagan Mohan Reddy repeatedly asserted that people in Narsaraopet and Sattenapalli have been forced to pay an additional tax to Dr. Siva Prasada Rao.
In Gurazala, Mr. Srinivasa Rao too faced charges of illegal mining of limestone and Mr. Pulla Rao faced allegations centred around his wife.