The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : YSR delighted by the performance of Congress

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Monday, Jun 02, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

YSR delighted by the performance of Congress

HYDERABAD: Buoyed by the performance of the Congress in the byelections in Telangana, Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy has asserted that the people proved that Telangana sentiment was not a monopoly or a patent of the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS).

The results reflected the “miserable failure” of TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao’s strategy and at the same time, negated the claims that the Congress won with the help of TRS in the 2004 elections. “In fact, it turned out to be the other way round,” Dr. Reddy told reporters here on Sunday.

The results showed the people’s response to the development and welfare schemes launched on an unprecedented scale in the State that helped the Congress secure majority in 19 Assembly segments -- 13 segments under four Lok Sabha seats and 6 it won of the 46 Assembly segments -- where bypolls were held.

The TRS stood in the first place in 16 places -- nine segments falling under the Lok Sabha seats and winning seven -- while the Telugu Desam could manage the third position winning four and leading in six segments.

‘Slap on the face’

The Congress made inroads into some of the constituencies like Dichpally, Vikarabad and Yellareddy which it had not won since 1983 while it won segments like Jadcharla which it won only once during 25 years. The results were a “slap on the face of the arrogant and deceitful politics” of the opposition parties, he said.

The Congress could have secured more seats, but for the organisational weaknesses that resulted in losing seats like Khanapur Assembly and Warangal Lok Sabha with thin margins.

Replying to queries, he refuted the claim that the TDP had performed better in the elections and said the number of votes polled by the party had in fact come down significantly in all the segments. “All these seats are TDP strongholds and the party should have won hands down following the break in the Congress-TRS alliance. But that did not happen,” he said.

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Andhra Pradesh