It is a sort of paradoxical situation for the voters of Nandyal assembly constituency, which is going to by-elections on August 23.
While the candidates for the electoral battle are more or less same, the parties on behalf of which they are contesting now reversed. And surprisingly, they are attacking the same parties which they had represented till recently.
Take for example, YSR Congress party candidate Silpa Mohan Reddy and his brother Silpa Chakrapani Reddy.
Till recently, they were in the Telugu Desam Party and Chakrapani was, in fact, the president of Kurnool district TDP unit.
Mohan Reddy contested on the TDP ticket against YSR Congress party candidate Bhuma Nagi Reddy in 2014. Both the Silpa brothers used to go hammer and tongs at Bhuma and YSRC Congress party president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy in strongest words.
Now, the roles have changed. With Bhuma family returning to the TDP, Silpa brothers felt they had lost their importance in the TDP.
After Bhuma Nagi Reddy’s death, Silpa desperately tried to get the TDP ticket for Nandyal and when he did not get it, he lost no time in jumping into the YSRC, which he had criticised in the past. Now, he is attacking the TDP and its president N Chandrababu Naidu in strongest terms.
Similarly Bhuma Akhilapriya, who joined the TDP along with her father, was a strong critic of Naidu in the past.
She even went to the extent of holding Chandrababu Naidu responsible for the death of her mother Shobha Nagi Reddy, as he was harassing her family. But now, she is praising Naidu and saying that he had helped her family.
In the past, TDP minister Kalva Srinivasulu was a bitter critic of Nagireddy when the latter was with YSRCP, alleging that Nagireddy resorted to ‘rowdyism’ in the Nandyal council meeting.
Now, Srinivasulu is moving around Nandyal roads depicting Nagireddy, whose death led to the byelection, as a great hero leaving the voters amused.
So, voters are confused as to whom they should believe. But, that is politics!
