Once One-Sided Fight, Andhra's Kuppam Seat A Loyalty Test For Chandrababu Naidu
NDTV
This tug-of-war between steadfast party loyalties and the tempting promise of populist benefits has left the TDP in a panic, making it desperately re-strategise to hold on to a bastion that is suddenly teetering.
Kuppam Assembly constituency in Andhra Pradesh, the home turf of TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu, is witnessing an unprecedented political upheaval as the unshakable loyalty of its residents towards Naidu and his party is being put to the test by the magnetic pull of the incumbent government's welfare schemes.
This tug-of-war between steadfast party loyalties and the tempting promise of populist benefits has left the TDP in a panic, making it desperately re-strategise to hold on to a bastion that is suddenly teetering.
In 2019, alarm bells rang as Naidu's vote share plunged to 55.18 per cent - his worst-ever showing in a place that had handed him resounding mandates since 1989.