YSR Congress MLCs on Thursday announced that they would address the Chief Minister and ministers by the names of their respective Assembly constituencies, in retaliation against ruling NDA legislators who have repeatedly referred to former CM and YSRC president Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy as “Pulivendula MLA.”
As part of this counter-strategy, the opposition MLCs declared they would now call Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu “Kuppam MLA,” Minister N Lokesh “Mangalagiri MLA,” and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan “Pitapuram MLA.”
The decision triggered high drama in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council. During a short discussion on the “Super Six” programmes, YSRC MLC Ramesh Yadav referred to Chandrababu Naidu as “Kuppam MLA.”
His remarks immediately sparked outrage among ruling NDA members, who rushed to the podium demanding that the comment be withdrawn from the records and that action be taken against him.
Presided over by Chairman Koyye Moshenu Raju, the Council session witnessed heated exchanges.
Yadav accused the ruling NDA government of failing to deliver on several promises, including job creation for unemployed youth, and alleged that it had copied the YSRC’s Amma Vodi scheme by rebranding it as Thalliki Vandanam.
While making these points, he referred to Naidu only as Kuppam MLA, which provoked protests.
Excise Minister Kollu Ravindra strongly objected, stating that Chandrababu Naidu is the Leader of the House in the Assembly, had served as Leader of the Opposition from 2019 to 2024, and led his party to a landslide victory by securing 164 out of 175 seats in the last election.
“Calling him Kuppam MLA does not show respect to the Chief Minister and violates established traditions,” Ravindra said.
Leader of Opposition in the Council Botsa Satyanarayana attempted to defend Yadav, saying he had mentioned Naidu’s constituency without any ill intent.
Civil Supplies Minister Nadendla Manohar countered by questioning how the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, respected by millions, could be referred to “merely as Kuppam MLA.”
BJP MLC Somu Veerraju also condemned the remark, saying it amounted to showing disrespect to the CM.
The issue left the House in uproar, highlighting how a war of words over constituency-based references has escalated into a full-blown political flashpoint.
