Congress won in hotspot areas

Electors stood behind the Congress in highly sensitive areas in the state where hundreds of farmers had lost their land to infrastructure or irrigation projects.
Both the Telugu Desam and the Praja Rajyam did their best to whip up emotions among the oustees of various projects at Polavaram, Vadarevu Nizampatnam Ports Industrial Corridor (Vanpic) and Kakinada Special Economic Zone apart from Nadergul and Polepally SEZ on the city outskirts.
In all these places the Congress came out with flying colours except in Polepally which comes under the Jadcherla Assembly segment limits in Mahbubnagar district. Here, the Congress nominee, Mr Mallu Ravi, won during the bypolls in 2008 when the agitation was at its peak but lost this time after the segment was converted from an SC seat into an open category.
Vanpic is a mega infrastructure project for which the government had ordered the acquisition of 28,000 acres. While 18,000 acres of the acquired land fell in Ongole and Chirala constituencies, the remaining land is in Repalle and Bapatla segments.
The Congress won all the four segments besides Ongole and Bapatla Lok Sabha segments.
The infrastructure minister, Mr Mopidevi Venkata Ramana, was the worst affected due to the TD criticism as thousands of people from his fishermen community would be displaced under the project in the erstwhile Nizampatnam constituency which became Repalle. The minister won from Repalle after he could convince the voters about the rehabilitation programme to be launched by Vanpic.
Interestingly, the former speaker, Mr Yanamala Ramakrishnudu, who flip flopped on the Kakinada SEZ and the CPI(M) which spearheaded the agitation against Polavaram, were turned down by the electors. Even in Satyaveedu SEZ area, the Congress polled more votes in eight villages affected by the project though the TD won the seat.
The Congress not only won in the Madhira Assembly seat but also got a majority of the votes in Mudigonda village where the CPI(M) led “bhooporatam” turned violent leading to the death of seven persons in police firing. The TD also claimed that one of its workers was killed and both the parties paraded dead bodies in 2007.
The CPI(M) which was also instrumental in the agitation of the Gangavaram port outstees leading to the death of two persons, stood fourth in Gajuwaka Assembly seat while the Congress candidate got 24,000 votes and its rebel 33,000. The Praja Rajyam won the seat securing 51,000 votes.
The Congress government while continuing the policy decision of the previous government, stepped up the acquisition process and even roped in GMR group when the original promoters including Oil and Natural Gas Commission developed cold feet over the project.
The TD president, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, even announced scrapping of the project after coming to power during his election campaign, while Chiranjeevi assured to have a relook into the issue.
“Mr Ramakrishnudu got fewer votes in Tondangi mandal where 3,500 acres were acquired for KSEZ,” one of the promoters of SEZ pointed out.
Mr Naidu also organised dharnas and stalled Assembly proceedings accusing the Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, of benefiting from the land sales in Nadurgul. He mobilised some villagers against the transactions.
However, the Congress nominee, Ms Sabita Indra Reddy, won comfortably from Nadurgul which falls in Maheswaram Assembly segment.

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