Rebellion in Tirupati over alliance's candidate picks

TIRUPATI: Discontentment is brewing within the ranks of the alliance partners, the Telugu Desam, Jana Sena and BJP over the selection of candidates from among the many aspirants for each seat.

This is majorly evident in the Tirupati assembly and parliament constituencies.

As per the pre-poll seat-sharing pact, TD allocated the prestigious Tirupati assembly seat to the JS and the parliamentary constituency to the BJP. TD cadres were deeply upset as JS and BJP have chosen to field defectors from the YSRC for these constituencies.

The JS, unable to find a suitable Balija community candidate for the Tirupati assembly segment, ultimately nominated former YSRC leader and Chittoor sitting MLA Arani Srinivasulu. This shocked several seat aspirants in TD, including former Tirupati MLA Sugunamma.

"It's an unfortunate that TD believes it has no stake in the spiritual capital. Our iconic 'Cycle' symbol will be missing from the campaign scene as also in Tirupati's ballot papers," rued Sugunamma.

She questioned the three-party alliance's rationale, saying, "Our party had raised allegations of corruption against Srinivasulu. Now we are fielding him for the prestigious Tirupati seat."

The BJP's decision to nominate Gudur MLA, V. Varaprasad Rao, for the Tirupati Lok Sabha constituency, within hours after he resigned from the YSRC, has also raised eyebrows. The saffron party was earlier considering prominent names like former Karnataka chief secretary S Rathna Prabha and local leader Muni Subramanyam.

With dissent growing within the ranks of the alliance in Tirupati, Sugunamma along with other aspirants from the TD, including JB Srinivas, Vooka Vijayakumar and others, held a series of meetings on Tuesday. They denounced the alliance’s decision to field former YSRC MLAs from the Tirupati assembly and parliamentary seats.

Worried over the massive protests, the alliance leadership is in a mood to review the decisions of these controversial candidates and initiate damage control efforts through negotiations.