The Deccan Powerplay : FREE READ | Introduction
The Deccan Powerplay is an enthralling tale of power, passion and treachery, mirroring the intensity of Telugu cinema on the political stage.
A Fresh Look at Politics and Practices
The end of Emergency in 1977 was a turning point for India at large and Andhra Pradesh in particular. The hopes, with which the state had come into existence 21 years ago, were put paid to by the overbearing attitude of the Congress high command and conflicts among party factions. When Indira Gandhi clamped Emergency on the nation, the state had just been through two bitter agitations for separate statehood already: one in Telangana in 1969 and another—that convulsed coastal Andhra—in 1972.
When Emergency ended and fresh elections were held in 1978, the old war horses limped away and yielded the battlefield to a new generation of political leaders—young, bold and brash who would soon grow in stature thereby steering the state through even more turbulent decades. At the end of all this tumult, Andhra Pradesh was left divided and reduced.
This book is a critical appraisal of the events and personalities that shaped the last 40 years of Andhra Pradesh, starting with the advent of Indira Gandhi’s Congress (I) government to the state’s division in 2014. In these years, the Telugu people have seen 13 chief ministers (CMs); from Marri Chenna Reddy in 1978 down to the present custodians of Andhra and Telangana the self-reliant Yeduguri Sandinti Jagan Mohan Reddy (Y.S. Jagan) and the dynamic Kalvakuntla Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR). Along the way, we encounter some formidable personalities: Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (NTR), Nara Chandrababu Naidu and Yeduguri Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR).
There have been several accounts of some of these leaders; even movies have been made about them. However, there is always a risk of readers forming misconceptions due to a writer’s or filmmaker’s biases, poor scholarship, or even myopic views. Hence, this book attempts an unbiased and contextuallybound probe into the politics of the Telugu states by examining the role played by three specific leaders: Chandrababu Naidu, YSR and Y.S. Jagan. Each of them played a crucial role in Andhra Pradesh being where it is today.
This book’s objective is to correct the abiding misperceptions regarding the above-named personalities. The methodology involves a deep dive into plethora of facts to present a true picture of these personalities thereby challenging the prejudiced vilification of them by vested interests and at the same time remaining aware of not turning this book into a series of eulogies.
1978: A Unique Political Turn
Something unique was happening during 1978. Among a host of young first-timers elected that year, three men—Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu, Chandrababu Naidu and YSR—of varying personalities and ideologies of governance stepped into the Legislative Assembly. The first was steeped in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) ideology. Chandrababu Naidu was not a freshman to the world of politics as he was already a student leader during his university days. Rajasekhara Reddy was a doctor by profession and an idealist by nature. The latter two slightly contrasting natures—became good friends during that term and became ministers in the Tanguturi Anjaiah (T. Anjaiah) cabinet.
All three later carved their paths to high stature. Venkaiah Naidu was elected twice to the legislature but later steered clear of direct elections after facing a few defeats. He entered Parliament as a Rajya Sabha member and became an influential minister in the cabinets of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Narendra Modi.
Chandrababu Naidu suffered one reverse in 1983 as a Congress candidate from Chandragiri constituency and promptly defected to the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), belying his vow to stay in the Congress to take on his father-in-law, NTR. Rajasekhara Reddy was made of different mettle: he remained in the Congress through thick and thin and showcased unwavering loyalty among his constituents. As a result, he was never defeated in any election. The Pulivendula Assembly Constituency and Kadapa Parliamentary Constituency became his fortresses and it didn’t matter whether he was in the ruling party or opposition.
Read more about the events and personalities that shaped Andhra Pradesh’s history from Indira Gandhi’s Congress (I) government to state division in 2014 here: The Deccan Powerplay