Turncoat Mastan Rao in RS race from Nellore

Nellore: The name of YSR Congress leader Beeda Mastan Rao who had shifted his loyalties from TDP immediately after elections is doing rounds in the YSR CP circles for the Rajya Sabha seat. He is being backed by the party's senior leader V Vijayasai Reddy.

Four members from the state are going to retire and it is expected that a seat would certainly be allocated to Nellore district in which Mastan Rao is said to be the strong contender, sources say.

When he was in TDP, he had planned to contest from Kavali constituency, but the party chief Chandrababu Naidu asked him to contest from Nellore after the resignation of MP candidate Adala Prabhakar Reddy shifted loyalties to the YSR Congress.

As per directions of the party, Mastan Rao contested for Nellore LS seat and the YSR Congress candidate A Prabhakar Reddy won the polls. Defeated Mastan Rao was away from the active politics for some months and later shifted his loyalties to the ruling YSR Congress. It was reported that Vijayasai Reddy had invited Mastan Rao into YSRCP and now he would help him to get RS seat.

Mastan Rao is having own followers in Kavali constituency as he had served as a legislator and also as party in-charge during the TDP regime. Though he was defeated in 2014 elections, he worked hard for the development of the constituency. He is maintaining good contacts with the local legislators and other leaders in the party.

Political analysts say there would be tough competition from the former MP Mekapati Rajamohan Reddy who had won from the district during the 2009 and 2014 elections. By virtue of his seniority and public contacts, he would be picked for the position as he had voluntarily quit the seat during 2019 polls.

But analysts maintain that because of his sacrifice in 2019 polls, his son Mekapati Goutham Reddy has been inducted into the cabinet. Elected candidate Adala Prabhakar Reddy is also relative to him and his own brother is also legislator of Udayagiri constituency. In such conditions, there are chances to Mastan Rao to get RS seat.