YSR Telangana party president Sharmila is all set to contest from Khammam district Paleru constituency in the forthcoming assembly elections.
As Sharmila is contesting from Paleru, a crucial meeting of the Paleru constituency has been arranged in Nelakondapalli on the 19th of this month.
Paleru constituency has been the bastion of Congress for ages. The Reddy community is the dominant force here.
Except for the by-election in 2016 when TRS’s Tummala Nageshwar Rao won, Congress has been winning the constituency since 1999. The grand-old party won the constituency in five elections.
Kandala Upender Reddy, who contested from Congress in the last Assembly elections won.
According to party sources, Sharmila has chosen Paleru because of the high tribal vote bank and the village politics being in the hands of Reddy’s community leaders.
Paleru has been the bastion of the Congress during YSR’s tenure as chief minister, and the lack of a strong leader in the Congress after Ramreddy Venkat Reddy’s death will help, Sharmila expects.
In addition, Sharmila’s party also hopes that the group politics within the TRS will benefit them. BJP which is growing in Telangana has almost zero presence here.
