The visit of the former Chief Minister of erstwhile united Andhra Pradesh, Nallari Kiran Kumar Reddy, to his native Assembly constituency Piler on Thursday led to a flutter among political circles of the ruling YSR Congress Party.
The presence of a large number of YSRCP supporters from various mandals at a personal get-together at Gurramkonda had turned into a hot topic in the constituency.
Followers of Mr. Kiran’s family told The Hindu that he had called on the family members of the former Tamballapalle MLA Kalicharla Prabhakar Reddy, who passed away recently, at their native village. Both the families hold decades of association. Later, Mr. Kiran received a rousing reception at Gurramkonda, where many cadres of the ruling party and the Telugu Desam Party, as well, presented him with bouquets and shawls.
Interestingly, N. Kishore Kumar Reddy, the former Chief Minister’s younger brother, is the TDP in-charge of Piler constituency, from where he lost the 2014 and 2019 Assembly elections. It is learnt that a prominent leader of YSRCP from Gurramkonda mandal had played a key role in welcoming Mr. Kiran and arranging the get-together.
Sources said that though Mr. Kiran had strictly stayed away from any political talk, he took time to exchange pleasantries with the cadres of both YSRCP and the TDP, besides visiting some of the houses to call on the ailing cadres.
It was observed that since 2014, after the exit of Mr. Kiran from active politics, hundreds of his followers had either joined the TDP or the YSRCP. The cadres of the ruling party at the grass-root level had reportedly poured out their woes with Mr. Kiran, saying that they were unhappy for not getting the due recognition in the party. They contended that they were branded as Kiran’s followers, though they had extended their steadfast support to the YSRCP in the 2019 elections.
Despite their staunch support to the ruling party, they are continuously subjected to bias as the Piler constituency holds the unquestionable sway of Panchayat Raj Minister Peddireddi Ramachandra Reddy, the arch-rival of Mr. Kiran. Responding to his followers, the former Chief Minister had reportedly consoled them saying “good times are ahead”.
A couple of Mr. Kiran’s followers, now sailing with the YSRCP, alleged that though they had executed some contract works for the government, payment of their bills to the tune of several lakhs of rupees were kept in abeyance, just because they were Mr. Kiran’s followers. They said that Mr. Kiran had helped them overcome the financial stress by getting them contracts in neighboring States.
The Kiran’s supporters reportedly expressed that old political equations had its impact on the recent reorganisation of districts.
“While Mr. Kiran’s family is batting for Madanapalle as the district headquarters, their rival side favours Rayachoti. This factor will influence regional politics. We tried to speak on it at Gurramkonda meeting, but were advised to be silent for the time being,” said a follower of the Nallari brothers.
