The choice of candidates for the six Rajya Sabha seats in Andhra Pradesh has triggered a serious trouble for both the major parties, Congress and Telugu Desam Party.
While the Congress has re-nominated three of the four retiring members KVP Ramachandra Rao, T Subbirami Reddy and M A Khan and the TDP has chosen two new faces, both of them big business persons, G Mohan Rao and Sita Mahalakshmi. Not confident of winning the fourth seat the Congress has not fielded any candidate. Instead the Telangana Rashtra Samiti has entered the fray with K Keshav Rao as its candidate with the support of Communist Party of India.
While the Congress was facing trouble from at least two rebel candidates KVV Satynarayana Raju and A Prabhakar Reddy, the TDP was facing revolt from well established leaders including strong Dalit leader M Narasimhlu.
Former Minister JC Diwakar Reddy, who had created a stir in the Congress by announcing his decision to contest as rebel candidate, withdrew suddenly at the last minute.
“I have decided to quit as senior party leaders spoke to me over phone and asked me to withdraw,” Diwakar Reddy said.
However, he was involved in an ugly public spat with the PCC president Satyanarayana. The two had full mouthed argument outside the chambers of Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy in the Assembly on Tuesday. While Botsa took Diwakar Reddy to task alleging he had tried to offer inducements to the members for their support in Rajya Sabha elections, Diwakar Reddy made a counter allegation that he had entered into a deal with the TRS to support its candidate.
Not only the two leaders asked each other to leave the party but at one stage, Diwakar Reddy also raised the hand at the state party chief.
But his place was immediately taken by A Prabhakar Reddy from Nellore. Both the rebel Congress candidates have entered the fray on the plank of united Andhra Pradesh. "I will withdraw from the fray if Congress leadership assures that the state will not be divided", said Raju.
Prabhakar Reddy on the other hand said that he will seek the support of all those Seemandhra MlAs of Congress who were opposed to division of the state. "As Congress has not nominated the fourth candidate, there is a fear that the pary votes will go to wrong candidates", he said.
Three official candidates of Congress party belong to three different regions of Telangana, Rayalaseema and Andhra and were rewarded for their loyalty to the party. After the state Congress president Botsa Satyanarayana handed them over the B form, the three candidates filed their nomination papers.