Congress cadres unhappy with contestants

By SNV Sudhir

Visakhapatnam, April 18, 2014:  The Congress seems to have not learnt its lessons even after so many defected from the party, after UPA took the decision to bifurcate the state. There is resentment among the party cadres, in Vizag, on the selection of candidates for various Assembly segments.

The party workers are openly expressing displeasure over selecting candidates for Vizag East and Gajuwaka segments. While Vizag east ticket was given to D Prabha Gowd who is very new to the party, Gajuwaka ticket was given to an outsider, film actor Sudhakar Naidu (GV).

Prabha Gowd, had only last month defected YSRC and joined Congress after she was denied ticket there. GV is new to Gajuwaka and no party worker knows him. He is completely new to the constituency. There were several aspirants for both Vizag East and Gajuwaka seats.

In Gajuwaka former mayor, Pulusu Janardhan Rao and INTUC district president Mantri Rajasekhar, aspired to get party tickets. They both organised many meetings to garner support of their followers in the constituency.  But to their dismay, Congress central leadership decided to field GV.

 On Tuesday Congress workers ransacked the party office with strong protests criticizing that party has allotted tickets to outsiders, disregarding services of local people. Seva Dal volunteers shouted slogans against the party, that even district and city presidents were not informed of the candidates being selected for various constituencies, in and around the city.

Irate workers also burnt flexis of Botsa Satyanayana  at the party office in Yellammathota. They criticized that offering tickets to outsiders has turned out to be a practice in the party without communicating to local leaders.

On Friday too, a group of party workers staged a protest at a meeting held with Congress leaders to discuss about electioneering in the coming days as most of the party candidates have already filed nominations. The irate workers raised slogans against the party leadership and demanded that Mantri Rajasekhar be given Gajuwaka ticket, to contest.

 Rajyasabha member, T Subbarami Reddy had to pacify, former corporator, Banala Srinivas who aspired for party nomination to contest from Vizag North. That ticket had gone to G Bharathi Venkateswari, wife of a Congress leader.