Former Vijayawada MP Lagadapati Rajagopal, who gained popularity as Andhra Octopus for his near accurate pre-election surveys, is getting ready for conducting a final survey on the possible outcome of the 2019 assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
Lagadapati told media in Penukonda in Anantapur district that the survey was being done and the results would be declared just before the elections.
He, however, rejected the allegation that he was favouring a particular political party.
“I have been away from politics and I will continue to be so. However, I will conduct the pre-elections and announce the results before elections,” he said.
The former MP predicted that the demand for special category status is going to be a major issue in the next elections.
“People are now strongly believing that granting of special category status would bring industries and fetch employment. They are going to teach a fitting lesson to the Bharatiya Janata Party in the next elections, as they had done with the Congress in the last elections for bifurcating the state,” he said.
Lagadapati’s pre-election surveys always generate a lot of curiosity among the political parties, because all his previous surveys were proved 90 per cent correct. So, his announcement will definitely cause tense moments in all the parties.
Very recently, Andhra Jyothy, promoted by journalist-turned-entrepreneur Vemuri Radhakrisha, came out with an election survey and claimed to have teamed up with Lagadapati, apparently to make the people believe that his survey is near accurate.
But Andhra Jyothy’s survey cannot expect to give a report against Telugu Desam Party and its president N Chandrababu Naidu. So, there was no surprise that it predicted 110 assembly seats for the TDP and 60 seats for the YSR Congress party, while Jana Sena Party will end up with the remaining five assembly seats.
The BJP and the Congress will draw blank in the state, it said.
