Caste, that decides the Kovur winner

Nellore: Casteism has become a major factor in the ensuing by-election for Kovur Assembly Constituency. Leaders of all the political parties have become extremely anxious over the outcome of this by-poll.

As caste card plays a crucial role in the outcome, even the state ministers belonging to different castes have jumped into the campaign and attracting the voters on the basis of their caste.

They are at a loss to know which sections of the society would be benefitted and which community will call the shots in the elections. The major parties, the Congress, the Telugu Desam, and the YSR Congress Party have pinned their hopes on the caste card.

It is obvious for the YSR Congress, which has heavily banked on the votes of the Reddy community and also the scheduled caste votes.

There are at least 36,000 SC voters in the constituency. Congress nominee Polamreddy Srinivasulu Reddy, who is a local candidate, has been proving a hard nut to crack. He has large number of followers and can tilt the balance in his favour by attracting maximum percentage of voters to his side.

The configuration of different castes in Kovur is puzzling to all the political parties. Among the Backward Classes, there are Gowda, Yadava, Fishermen, Padmasalis, Mudirajs, Rajaks, and Devangas. The devanga and the Rajak communities have contacts with all the political parties.

The Telugu Desam Party hopes that the Gowda community would support its candidate. Also, there are 8,803 Pata Kapu voters who have become a force to reckon in the elections, major political parties have started wooing them.

There are 18,026 girijan voters in the constituency and it is for this reason that Chiranjeevi selected a tribal woman Tupakula Munemma as the Praja Rajyam Party candidate who could attract a large number of voters in the 2009 elections.

There are 3,708 Vyshyas, 3,404 Mudirajs, 2,859 Wadderas, 2,726 Bondis, 2,551 Rajakas, and 2,212 Brahmins. Besides, there are also other caste groups and leaders of all the political parties are trying hard to woo them.

While Mopidevi Venkataramana was trying to seek the support of the fishermen, Pithani Satyanarayana was wooing the Gowdas. PCC chief Botsa Satyanarayana and Chiranjeevi were trying to attract the Kapus to their side.

The Telugu Desam Party was also using similar tactics to attract the voters belonging to various communities to their side.