Chittoor contributed many stalwarts to politics

Chittoor: Chittoor, the district headquarters, has a history of contributing many stalwarts who played a prominent role in the freedom struggle and served in high positions like chief ministers.

There are also many leaders from the district who played a dominant role, in other parties, including Justice Party, Swatantra Party and Krishikar Lok Party in the pre and post- Independence era. They include Madabhusi Ananthsainam Ayyangar who led the freedom struggle in Chittoor district and served as Chittoor Congress MP and also Lok Sabha Speaker.

Before him, there was Raja Panaganti Ramarayaningar, also known as the Raja of Panagar, a Zamindar of Kalahasti, active in Justice Party and served as Madras Presidency Chief Minister from 1921 to 1926. The other stalwarts who had made the district as the base include Acharya N G Ranga. Two others, Nara Chandrababu Naidu who served as AP CM for 14 years and Nallari Kiran Kumar Reddy, the last CM of united Andhra Pradesh for three years.

The Congress which had dominated the district politics for nearly 25 years gave a way to TDP from 1989. Another prominent person Chittoor Krishnaswamy Jayachandra Reddy popular as CK Babu, a strongman in politics had first won as an independent MLA in 1989, later joined Congress, was its MLA for three more times (1994, 1999 and 2009).

The first MLA from Chittoor constituency Chinnama Reddy of Congress had won in 1952 election, but in the 1953 byelection Srungaram of Krishikar Lok Party got elected. In 1955 Chinnama Reddy again got elected.

However, in 1962, Swatantra Party candidate C D Naidu was elected. In 1967 and in 1972 Congress Party candidate D Anjaneyulu Naidu was elected. In 1978 Janata Party candidate N P Venkateswara Choudhary won as an MLA, following the defeat of Congress Party.

After TDP was born in 1983 N P Jhansi Lakshmi became MLA. But in 1985 R Gopinathan of the Congress Party was elected. After a gap of 20 years in 2004, TDP candidate A S Manohar was elected as MLA from Chittoor though the Congress came to power defeating TDP.

In 2014 after bifurcation of the state, TDP candidate D A Satyaprabha was elected in 2014 elections. But she was defeated by YSRCP candidate Jangalapalli Srinivasulu in 2019.

This time the YSRCP appointed M C Vijayananda Reddy who is holding the position of APSRTC vice-chairman, as Chittoor Assembly constituency in-charge, indicating that he will be probably the party candidate to contest from Chittoor in 2024 elections.

The TDP is yet to declare its candidate though the party is making all out efforts to regain the Chittoor seat.