TDP, YSRCP leaders flock to Hyderabad, target AP voters in Telangana

Hyderabad: With the Andhra Pradesh Assembly and Lok Sabha elections quickly approaching, several prominent leaders from the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) are heading to Hyderabad to conduct a series of meetings in an attempt to draw voters of the AP settled in Telangana.

In the Hyderabad region, the Andhra settlers hold greater sway as a voting bloc in the areas of Kukatpally, Serilingampally, Rajendra Nagar, Malkajgiri and Quthbullapur, Jubilee Hills, Maheshwaram, Ibrahimpatnam, and LB Nagar. Analysts claim that their impact is most noticeable in the victory of the candidates announced by the political parties across various districts in the AP.

Techies gather political forces

Among them, the ‘CBN Army’ of the TDP consisting of techies came up with a strategy to attract the voters.

A few months ago, the CBN Army – the followers of TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu – staged agitations in Hyderabad and condemned the illegal arrest of Nadu in the AP Development Skill Scam. At present, the CBN Army with the support of other leaders are planning to interact with the settlers in Hyderabad and highlight the significance of bringing back Naidu to power for the holistic development of Andhra Pradesh.

Special buses for voters

Apart from highlighting the significance of Naidu, the CBN Army is also mulling to operate special buses to the state from Hyderabad for the voters during the elections.

In a recent meeting held at NTR Bhavan, Narasaraopet and Parchur TDP MLA candidates Ch Arvind Babu and Y Sambasiva Rao participated in the event and interacted with the Andhra settlers from various parts of Hyderabad. In the next 10 days, the TDP along with the Jana Sena party is also gearing up to organise similar meetings in the areas where Andhra settlers are high in number in the twin cities.

According to Ch Rakesh, a CBN Army member, about 12 lakh Andhra voters reside in the twin towns of Secunderabad and Hyderabad. During the polls, they cast their votes in their home villages or towns, even though the majority of them were staying here due to their jobs in the commercial, service, and IT sectors. In compliance with the directives from the TDP hierarchy, notable figures would interact with Hyderabad voters over the course of the next ten days to educate them about the importance of voting for Chandrababu Naidu in order to advance the interests of AP as a whole.

In response to a question concerning any intentions to set up voter transportation, Rakesh stated that typically, candidates who can afford the expenses would set up buses for the voters. As of yet, no firm decision has been made on the matter, he added.

YSRCP with a similar strategy

A similar strategy was also being followed by the YSRCP leaders to draw the attention of the voters. The YSRCP MLA candidates Pilli Surya Prakash (Ramachandrapuram) and Ch Jaggi Reddy (Kothapeta) of Dr BR Ambedkar Konaseema district will conduct an interaction meeting with the voters of their respective constituencies in Hyderabad.

The YSRCP leadership is making all necessary arrangements to conduct a ‘Memu Siddham’ meeting with voters at NKNR Gardens in Kukatpally on April 14.

Ongole MP candidate Chevireddy Bhaskar Reddy, along with 10 MLA candidates from the party will participate in the meeting. Sources said that Chevireddy would highlight the welfare done by the YS Jagan Mohan Reddy government during the last five years in the state and take out the slogan ‘Why AP Needs Jagan’ in the voters.