Congress chief YS Sharmila, daughter of former CM of undivided Andhra Pradesh YS Rajasekhar Reddy, who is trying her electoral luck for the first time, is pitted against sitting YSRCP MP and her cousin, YS Avinash Reddy.
The Pulivendula assembly segment, from where Andhra CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy is contesting, is part of the Kadapa Lok Sabha seat. Sharmila is thus not only pitted against Avinash but also her own brother, Jagan, indirectly.
Interestingly, all the three are fighting for the legacy of Rajasekhar Reddy, who was a two-time chief minister of Andhra Pradesh and also served as an MP for four terms — 1989, 1991, 1996 and 1998.
Rajasekhar Reddy’s younger sibling, YS Vivekananda Reddy, was elected twice from Kadapa — in 1999 and 2004. Rajasekhar Reddy’s son, Jagan, was also a two-time MP — elected in 2009 and 2011.
Jagan, who first got elected on a Congress ticket when his father was alive in 2009, exited the grand old party the next year following differences in the aftermath of his father’s death.
After floating YSRCP, his own political outfit, Jagan contested once again from the Kadapa Lok Sabha seat in 2011 and got 5,45,672 votes — the highest ever by any candidate in the constituency.
When Jagan shifted base from Kadapa to his native Pulivendula assembly constituency in the 2014 general elections, his cousin, YS Avinash Reddy, secured his debut victory in Kadapa with 1,90,323 votes. He was re-elected from Kadapa in 2019 with 3,80,726 votes.
Meanwhile, differences cropped up between Jagan and Sharmila, following which the latter joined Congress and was appointed APCC president. While YSRCP has re-fielded YS Avinash Reddy, TDP has chosen Chadipiralla Bhupesh Subbirami Reddy — a debutant.
The Kadapa Lok Sabha seat covers the assembly constituencies of Kadapa, Proddatur, Jammalamadugu, Mydukur, Badvel (SC), Kamalapuram and Pulivendula.
The legacy of YSR and YS Vivekananda Reddy murder case have emerged as two key poll issues in Kadapa and a war of words is on between YSRCP and Sharmila.
As the two contenders from the YS family are engaged in a high-stakes battle, Jagan’s family, including his wife, YS Bharati, are campaigning for him in Pulivendula and for Avinash in the Kadapa seat.
On the other hand, former minister YS Vivekananda Reddy’s daughter, Suneetha Narreddy, and her husband, Narreddy Rajasekhar, are campaigning for Sharmila.