The general perception today is that in order to win any sort of election; Corporator, MLA, MP, MLC etc, one needs to spend a lot failing which winning is an impossibility.
But time and again, there are people who have won merely on the strength of their goodwill and without spending anything.
Rama Surya Rao who won the recent MLC election from Godavari constituencies, is one such candidate. He defeated the TDP candidate, Chaitanya Raju, a well known educationalist and big shot by a comfortable margin.
Raju was believed to have splurged a lot on the election. On the contrary, Surya Rao had nothing in his favor but goodwill. Surya Rao has converted his residence into a home for poor children apart from seeing to the education of nearly 100 poor children.
Is it any wonder then, that the people choose to vote overwhelmingly for Surya Rao rather than someone who just thought he could buy his way into the legislative council?
