ON A KNIFE-EDGE

YSRCP CHIEF JAGAN REDDY AND HIS TDP COUNTERPART CHANDRABABU NAIDU ARE LOCKED IN A KEEN CONTEST. THE LATTER'S NDA ALLIANCE ALSO STANDS IN THE WAY OF THE ANDHRA CM'S DREAMS OF A SECOND TERM IN POWER IN TWIN POLLS 

- AMARNATH K. MENON

On MARCH 16, ANDHRA PRADESH CHIEF MINISTER Y.S. JAGAN MOHAN REDDY PAID HOMAGE at the memorial of his father and former CM Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, on the family estate at Idupulupaya in Kadapa district before going on to announce the names of party contestants for the 175 assembly and 25 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Just hours later, though, his Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) came in for a rude shock as the Election Commission (EC) announced that the state would go to the polls only in the fourth phase, and not the first, as had been the case in the past four elections. Any hope of running a short, sustained campaign leading to a triumphant election in April was shattered.

That the voting will now be on May 13 at the peak of summer is a worry, not just for the YSRCP but also for all the parties in the fray. A drop in the voter turnout could make for an unpredictable result, especially in a tight fight where the YSRCP is taking on the rival Telugu Desam Party (TDP)-led alliance consisting of the BJP and actor Pawan Kalyan's Jana Sena, and also the Congress-Left combine. The latter, now led by Jagan's sister Y.S. Sharmila in the state, are on a revival path but the jury is still out on whether the Andhra voters have forgiven the Grand Old Party for carving out Telangana-and their heart, Hyderabad-out of it.