Candidates help petty traders, food vendors in their business

VIJAYAWADA: The candidates contesting the 2019 elections seem to be more inclined to preparing dosas to woo the voters in Andhra Pradesh.

The candidates of all t he major political parties like the Telugu Desam, YSR Congress, Jana Sena and  BJP have been trying to convince the voters, specially those belonging to the economically weaker sections, by helping them in their petty businesses like cooking ‘punugulu’ ‘bajjilu’ and making idlis and dosas.
Minister for IT

N. Lokesh, who is contesting from the Mangalagiri Assembly constituency on a TD ticket, had even done haircut, during campaigning in an area in the town.
As many as 3,111 candidates are in the fray for the 175 Assembly seats in AP of whom, 875 candidates belong to the major political parties -- TD, YSRC, Congress, BJP and JS.

Over 125 aspirants are contesting from the five major political parties for the 25 MP seats in the state.

A majority of candidates and their family members,  mainly women, were found helping vendors in small hotels and roadside pushcarts, to make the voters feel that they too can understand difficulties in life. This is also a gesture which would help them mingle with the voters.

TD MP Galla Jayadev pedalled a bicycle while some other MLA aspirants ironed clothes, cooked mirchi bajjis, idlis, sold vegetables, tea and coffee.

The candidates left no stone unturned in wooing the voters. A majority of the candidates, mainly women aspirants, were found trying their hand at cooking in small hotels and on pushcarts, beside roads.

Minister Lokesh, who is focusing on his constituency, Mangalagiri,  is meeting various sections of the society and seeking their votes in his favour.

He is visiting pan shops, units managed by petty traders and interacting with them on a daily basis.

In one such instance, he stopped at a barber salon and took the scissors to give a haircut to one of the customers and the TD activists accompanying him cheered him by clapping for the gesture.

Mangalagiri is known for handlooms. While visiting the weavers at their houses, Mr Lokesh tried his hand at the loom as well, and urged all of those whome he met to cast their vote in his favour and help him make the town a model to be followed.

Guntur TD MP aspirant Galla Jayadev tried to woo the voters by pedalling a bicycle, the election symbol of his party, TD. He enquired traders how their business was running and if the benefits of all the welfare schemes, being implemented by the government, were reaching them.

TD candidate for Vijayawada West Assembly constituency Shabana Khatoon, accompanied by  Kesineni Swetha, daughter of Vijayawada MP Kesineni Srinivas, met voters and assisted petty vendors selling dosas beside the road by helping them in cooking.

They said that such acts helped them know the difficulties of the poor and the pleasure of being one among the  common people.  Krishna ZP chairperson
G. Anuradha also cooked dosas, bajjis and other eatables during campaigning for her husband G. Rammohan, contesting from Vijayawada East constituency on TD ticket. The main idea behind such gestures is to make the voters feel happy that they too could see the elected representatives from close quarters.