Nandyal bypoll: A high-stakes battle

Nandyal, which derives its name from nine Nandi temples that surround it, has now turned into a battleground of Andhra Pradesh politics, owing to the by-elections necessitated by the death of Bhuma Nagi Reddy.

In normal course, the by-election to the Nandyal Assembly constituency in Kurnool district would have been a non-affair and a member of Nagi Reddy family would have been elected unopposed, as both leading political parties in Andhra Pradesh – YSR Congress Party and Telugu Desam Party – religiously stuck to the practice of not fielding candidate against the family member of a deceased legislator.

But the situation in Nandyal is peculiar. Nagi Reddy won the Assembly seat on YSRCP ticket, but later shifted his loyalties along with his daughter and Allagadda MLA Akhila Priya to ruling TDP, with an eye on a cabinet berth. But he couldn't realise his dream of becoming a minister though his daughter got lucky after his untimely demise.

Interestingly, the by-poll scheduled for August 23 is not only crucial for Bhuma family, but also for YSR Congress president and Opposition leader Y S Jaganmohan Reddy as well as TDP chief and Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu.

A victory in the election which is considered by many as the semi-finals for the 2019 Assembly elections is essential for both the parties and the winner will obviously be on a strong-footing in the run-up to the key battle that is to take place two years later.

But the victory is not going to come easily. More so for YSRCP which fielded Silpa Mohan Reddy who incidentally contested on TDP ticket and lost by a small margin of 3,604 votes in 2014, as sympathy wave for Nagi Reddy's death may make the task easier for TDP candidate Bhuma Brahmananda Reddy, Nagi Reddy's nephew.

Perhaps, sensing this danger, Jaganmohan Reddy took an aggressive stance from the word go and raised the pitch by launching a vitriolic attack against his arch-rival Naidu. His hyperbolic statement that there was no wrong in shooting Chandrababu Naidu in the middle of a road for his misdeeds created flutter across the State.

The hidden strategy behind such aggressive statements seems to be aimed at blunting the sympathy wave for the TDP candidate and turn the bypoll into a battle between TDP and YSRCP, not the one between two candidates. It looks like this strategy has paid off, to some extent.

TDP fell into YSRCP trap and organised protests across Andhra Pradesh. Going by the reports emanating from the bypoll battleground, the fight in Nandyal now appears to be between Jagan Reddy and Naidu, not between Mohan Reddy and Brahmananda Reddy.

But Chandrababu Naidu shouldn't complain about Jagan's aggression. The fact of the matter is that he is the one who has brought aggression into otherwise plain-vanilla Telugu politics.

It's time for him, in the twilight zone of his political career, to face fallout of the strategies of his rivals who are emulating him. And it's also right time for him to teach one or two tricks of the political trade to his son, Nara Lokesh, the heir apparent and future leader of TDP, as political dynasties are here to stay in Telugu lands. But interestingly, Naidu has kept his son Lokesh away from active campaign so as not to expose the young politician to criticism in the event of a loss.

However, there is a downside to Jagan's aggressive strategy. As he turned the bypoll into a fight him and Naidu, political repercussions will be wider for him if his party loses the high-stakes Nandyal election. It will be interesting to see how he will handle it.

As of now, the contest is keen, intense and intriguing. And all major stakeholders are sweating over the poll strategies. TDP has strategically kept its alliance partner BJP away from the by-election so as not to antagonise 45,000-strong Muslim community in the constituency. But you never know. Politics is fluidic in nature and it is not easy to gauge the course of a tide in a complex election like Nandyal.

More so when a battle-hardened political general like Chandrababu Naidu is leading the vanguard on one side while a young general with keen acumen like Jagan Reddy on the opposite side. But the outcome will decide, among other things, whether it's morally right to defect. That's will be a crucial takeaway from the Nandyal battle, for people and parties.

By P Madhusudhan Reddy