DASARI SRINIVASA RAO
An election showdown is on the horizon in the Machilipatnam Lok Sabha segment within the combined Krishna district for the upcoming general elections. The contest will feature an oncologist, Dr. Simhadri Chandrasekhar Rao, based in Hyderabad, and Vallabhaneni Balashowry, an industrialist-cum-politician who currently holds the MP seat.
Vallabhaneni Balashowry recently parted ways with the YSRCP, aligning himself with the Jana Sena Party (JSP). Consequently, the YSRCP nominated Dr Simhadri Chandrasekhar Rao, the son of prominent Oncologist and former minister Simhadri Satyanarayana, as their candidate for the Lok Sabha. This sets the stage for a head-to-head battle between Chandrasekhar Rao and the seasoned politician Vallabhaneni Balashowry in the upcoming elections.
Despite Dr Simhadri Chandrasekhar Rao’s newcomer status in electoral politics, he has been actively engaged in campaign activities. Both candidates have commenced their election campaigns in the Lok Sabha constituency. The opposition TDP and BJP have thrown their support behind JSP candidate Balashowry. Political analysts foresee a closely contested battle between the YSRCP and JSP candidates in the impending elections.
Traditionally, the Machilipatnam Lok Sabha segment was a stronghold for the Congress party. However, it has been under the dominance of the TDP since the inception of the latter. Of the nine general elections held for the Machilipatnam LS so far, the TDP emerged victorious five times, while the Congress secured the seat thrice. The YSRCP clinched victory in the 2019 election.
The Machilipatnam LS comprises seven assembly segments: Machilipatnam, Pedana, Avanigadda, Gudivada, Pamarru, Penamaluru, and Gannavaram. In the previous elections, except for Gannavaram, all six segments were won by the YSRCP, with Gannavaram being secured by the TDP. However, following recent political shifts, TDP’s Gannavaram MLA Dr. Vallabhaneni Vamsi Mohan switched allegiance to the YSRCP from the TDP.
Kavuri Sambasiva Rao, a veteran politician, has etched his name in history by winning three times from the Machilipatnam Lok Sabha constituency. He secured victories as a Congress party candidate in the 1984 and 1989 general elections. Subsequently, he clinched the seat again in the 1998 elections as an MP. Following his tenure, the constituency saw representatives from different parties, including TDP’s Konakalla Narayana Rao and Congress party’s Maganti Ankineedu, who served two terms each.
In the inaugural general elections of 1952, Sanaka Bucchikotaiah of the Communist Party of India (CPI) emerged victorious as a Parliament Member from the Machilipatnam Lok Sabha. Additionally, Mandali Venkata Krishna Rao (1957), Mandala Venkata Swamy Naidu (1962), Y Ankineedu Prasad (1967), and Meduri Nageswara Rao (1971) represented this segment. Apart from Mandala Venkata Swamy Naidu, who was elected as an Independent, the remaining MPs represented the Congress party.
Similarly, KP Reddaiah Yadav contested as a TDP candidate in the 1991 elections, defeating Congress party’s Kavuri Sambasiva Rao. This was followed by Kaikala Satyanarayana (1996) and Ambati Brahmanaiah (1999), who were elected as MPs from the TDP. However, in the 2004 elections, Badiga Ramakrishna of the Congress party emerged victorious. Apart from Kavuri Sambasiva Rao, no other candidate has been elected as MP from this segment three times.
The upcoming elections promise a fierce contest between YSRCP’s Chandrasekhar Rao and JSP’s Vallabhaneni Balashowry. Notably, Balashowry previously served as an MP from the Tenali Lok Sabha in the 2004 elections and later contested as a YSRCP candidate in 2019. His departure from the YSRCP to join the JSP stemmed from differences with Machilipatnam MLA Perni Venkatramaiah, alias Nani.