Before the recent assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, YSR Congress party leaders had vowed to see that Jana Sena Party president and power star Pawan Kalyan would not enter the state assembly at any cost and that he won’t be able to touch even the assembly gates.
The party put up the toughest fight in Pithapuram assembly constituency, where Pawan Kalyan contested the elections.
YSRCP president and then chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy dropped then sitting MLA Pendem Dorababu and fielded then Kakinada MP Vanga Geetha against Pawan Kalyan.
Several top YSRCP leaders, besides Kapu leader Mudragada Padmanabham, did extensive campaign in Pithapuram to defeat Pawan Kalyan.
Yet, the Jana Sena Party chief emerged victorious by winning the seat with a huge margin of over 70,000 votes. Elsewhere in the state, the Jana Sena Party won all the seats it had contested, thereby recording 100% strike rate.
After the elections, the YSRCP in Pithapuram has become totally shattered with no leader willing to take up any activity there.
While Vanga Geetha has gone silent and is nowhere to be seen, other YSRCP leaders are looking for better alterative for their political survival.
According to latest reports, former MLA Pendem Dorababu is now in talks with Jana Sena Party leadership and is most likely to quit the YSRCP to join hands with Pawan Kalyan.
Apparently, he is hopeful that if not Pithapuram, he might get a chance to contest the next elections from any adjacent constituency.
Along with Dorababu, many other senior YSRCP leaders might quit the party and join the Jana Sena Party. However, so far, there has not been any response from Pawan Kalyan on these proposed defections.
“He is not in a hurry and will take his own time. He will also keep in mind the political interests of his alliance partner – Telugu Desam Party,” sources said.