K Venkateshwarlu
Hyderabad
Will YS Sharmila’s YSRTP split anti-incumbency votes if her party contests in the Assembly elections as she has decided to field her party candidates in all the 119 Assembly constituencies with the Congress not responding to her plea to allow her to merge her party with the Congress?
Political analysts say that there is a probability that her party may split anti-incumbency votes. However, they added that it is not known as of now which party is going to be affected by that split and to what extent it will be.
One political analyst said that YSRTP may not be in a position to win seats but definitely it will attract 1,000 to 10,000 votes in many constituencies affecting the outcome. The YSRTP may trouble its opponents if senior leaders who did not get tickets from other political parties join the YSRTP at the last minute and contest on YSRTP tickets. Those leaders may give tough fights to their opponents. There are bright chances of many ticket hopefuls from other political parties joining the YSRTP after parties announce their candidates, he said.
TPCC’s official spokesperson Boreddy Ayodya Reddy said that Sharmila’s party has every right to contest the elections. However, the Congress will not be affected by her party contesting elections, he said.
The Congress has strong leaders in Telangana and the party will win easily, he said.
Meanwhile, Sharmila, addressing the party’s state executive committee on Thursday, said that she thinks that anti-incumbency votes will not split if she goes with the Congress.
“I thought I should not get a bad name of splitting the anti-incumbency vote by contesting alone. I thought KCR would once again become the CM if a split takes place in anti-incumbency votes and so I held talks with the Congress. I waited for four months but there was no response from the Congress. So I decided to field our candidates in all the 119 constituencies,” she said.
Sharmila also said that the YSRTP will give a tough fight in all the 119 constituencies. She asked party leaders to apply for B-forms. She also made it clear that she is going to contest from Palair and may contest from another constituency too.
She said that her husband Brother Anil Kumar and her mother Vijayamma will also contest if the need arises.
