Visakhapatnam: The question on the minds of pollsters is whether YSRC’s M.V.V. Satyanarayana will break the ruling party’s losing streak in Visakhapatnam East assembly constituency.
He is pitted against TDP’s Velagapudi Rama Krishna, a three-time winner of the opposition party, who has a streak of not losing an election. Velagapudi has a strong grip on Visakhapatnam East. He has won from the constituency consecutively in 2009, 2014 and 2019 elections.
Visakhapatnam East constituency is among the assembly seats that the Telugu Desam Party won in Visakhapatnam during the 2019 elections when the party suffered a drubbing at the hands of YSRC in other parts of Andhra Pradesh.
Ruling YSRC has tried to break its jinx in Visakhapatnam by gaining a foothold among the backward classes by giving plum posts to three leaders of the Yadava community, one of the dominant castes in the area.
However, one of these three leaders Akkaramani Vijaya Nirmala, appointed Visakhapatnam Metro Region Development Authority (VMRDA) chairperson, has quit her post and YSRC and joined the Telugu Desam.
Vijaya Nirmala, who is from the Yadava community, commands considerable support in Bheemli, Gajuwaka, and Visakhapatnam East and South constituencies.
Interestingly, Vamsi Krishna Srinivas, who had contested against TDP nominee Velagapudi Rama Krishna in the last three elections and lost, has joined the Jana Sena Party. As a member of the NDA alliance, Vamsi is supporting Velagapudi in Visakhapatnam East in the 2024 elections.
YSRC candidate from Visakhapatnam East M.V.V. Satyanarayana is a film producer. He has impressive assets worth Rs 202 crores according to the affidavit he submitted to the Election Commission in the 2019 elections. He contested from the Visakhapatnam Lok Sabha constituency and won with a significant margin.
Now, the Lok Sabha winner is contesting from the Visakhapatnam East assembly seat against TDP’s Velagapudi, a three-time winner, who has not lost any assembly election since 2009.
Visakhapatnam East constituency has a total of 2,89,326 voters – 1,41,118 males, 1,48,187 females, and 21 transgender.
The question now is whether Velagapudi Rama Krishna's winning streak will continue or Satyanarayana will break ruling YSRC's losing streak in Visakhapatnam East constituency.
