The Hindu : Congress move to forge unity among leaders

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jan 18, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Srikakulam

Congress move to forge unity among leaders

By Our Staff Reporter

SRIKAKULAM, JAN. 17. On the lines of the bus yatra taken up in several parts of the State to forge unity, the Congress has planned a constituency-wise programme to bring leaders of Srikakulam district together.

The programme would commence on January 19 and continue up to January 29 with a three-day break in between since an AICC observer was scheduled to visit, announced the former Minister and PCC co-ordinator, N. Raghuveera Reddy, at a meeting here on Saturday. The programme would begin from Manikyapuram in Ichhapuram constituency. At first, today's meeting was declared exclusive for those aspiring to contest to the Assembly and the Lok Sabha and party functionaries at various levels. The Press was also told that the meeting was in-camera. But subsequently the Press was allowed and the meeting by and large focussed on unity and co-ordination.

The meeting of two co-ordinators, the other being P Rangayya, with leaders, constituency-wise, was postponed to the afternoon and shifted to a hotel in the town. Mr Raghuveera Reddy and the PCC general secretary and former minster, Dharmana Prasada Rao, were at pains to stress that even that meeting was not meant to "take biodata'' (from aspirants). None in the party, including the APCC president, D Srinivas, and the former CLP leader, YS Rajasekhar Reddy, would talk about who would get the tickets

The recommendations for this or that candidate also would not be entertained. Ticket-distribution would solely depend upon the surveys being organised by the AICC, the meeting was told. The meeting with leaders of constituencies in the afternoon was on strengthening the party and their contribution in that direction. Several aspirants thronged the venue of the meeting, Bapuji Kalamandiram.

Addressing the meeting Mr Raghuveera Reddy said the poor show of the party in the 1999 elections did not reflect the strength of the party but its management failure. The task before the leaders was to highlight the "failures of the Government" and attract voters to the Congress, he said. The DCC president, P Rajasekharam, who was in chair, said leaders would also tour villages later. Mr Rangayya said if co-ordination was brought about the party would win half the seats in the district. The former deputy leader of the CLP, S Vijayarama Raju, hoped the deserving among those who did not get ticket would be accommodated in the legislative council, which the Congress wanted to revive. Also declaring YS Rajasekhar Reddy as chief ministerial candidate would improve the Congress vote by 20 per cent, he said.

Mr Dharmana Prasada Rao claimed that there was a silent wave against the TDP in the district. The Congress was poised to repeat the success it had achieved way back in 1972 when it had won majority of the 19 seats, he said.

The former minister, Gorle Sriramulu Naidu, who generally kept away from the party meetings, said the failure of the party was due to "fixing'' by some persons and it should be dealt with seriously and if necessary, action should be taken against them before elections.

The Bobbili MP, Botsa Satyanarayana, former MPs, H Appayya Dora, and Kaniti Viswanadham, former MLC, G Narsinga Rao, and PCC general secretary, G Haribabu Naidu, also spoke.

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