The Hindu : `Intintiki Congress' turns a damp squib

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jan 29, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Others

`Intintiki Congress' turns a damp squib

By Our Staff Reporter

NARASAPUR (WEST GODAVARI DT), JAN 28. The "Intintiki Congress'' programme turned out to be a low-key affair in this BJP-TDP stronghold in West Godavari district on Wednesday.

The former deputy chief minister, Koneru Ranga Rao, formally launched the programme after offering prayers at the nearby Sivalayam. Leading the party workers, Mr. Rao visited a couple of houses in the heart of the town and requested the family members to vote for the Congress, marking launching of the programme.

Lack of coordination and group rivalry appeared to have its own impact on crowd mobilisation for the launch of the programme. Although the District Congress Committee (DCC) had stated that the fortnight-long programme would focus on the twin issues -- display of unity within the party and exposure of the TDP-BJP `misrule' in the State and at the Centre -- they got relegated to the background due to bickerings that cast a shadow over the ambitious programme.

As a result, the DCC chief, G.S. Rao, was constrained to devote most of his time to appease the warring groups and ticket-seekers. When he invited Kalavakolanu Nagatulasi Rao, who lost to K. Subbarayudu, Minister for Power, in the previous Assembly elections, the rival group strongly protested his gesture and insisted that Mudunuri Prasada Raju, one of the strong contenders for the party ticket for Narasapur Assembly segment and the Yalamanchili mandal praja parishad president, also be given a similar recognition.

Interestingly, Kanumuri Bapi Raju, who unsuccessfully contested against the Union Minister of State for Rural Development, U.V. Krishnam Raju, from this Lok Sabha constituency in the last election, also defended the plea of the rival group and urged the DCC chief to concede it.

Mr. Rao gave in and extended an invitation to all ticket-seekers for both the Assembly and Parliamentary elections to come to the dais and take an oath that they would shun group rivalry and work for the party regardless of its choice of candidates. In no time, half-a-dozen aspirants, who included Mr. Nagatulasi Rao and Mr. Prasada Raju, appeared on the dais and followed the suit. Conspicuously, none had responded to his call as for as the candidates for the Lok Sabha seat was concerned.

Chegondi Harirama Jogaiah, who groomed Mr. Subbarayudu into a `strongman of Narasapur' when he was in the TDP, mildly turned down the request by the DCC president to address the gathering in an obvious bid to avoid the bashing of his one-time disciple.

For the downbeat Congress rank and file in the area, the presence of Parakala Kalikambha, former MLA from the area and wife of the former Congress minister, Parakala Seshavataram, was a reminiscent of the `good old days' of the party which was a strong force in the constituency till the inception of the TDP.

The Congress leadership planned to storm into this TDP-BJP bastion and make its presence felt in the political nerve centre since it happened to be the home constituency for the Union Minister of State, Mr. Krishnam Raju, and the Power Minister, Mr. Subbarayudu.

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