Y S Sharmila Reddy Is Trailing Behind Arch Rival Y S Avinash Reddy(image@realyssharmila)

In Andhra Pradesh’s Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency, Y S Sharmila is leading far behind YSRCP’s Y S Avinash Reddy, who is also her nephew. Avinash Reddy is leading the seat with more than 55,000 votes, while Sharmila is at the third position, and is behind 3,16,783 votes.

Y S Sharmila Reddy has fought a hard battle in Andhra Pradesh. She has contested from the Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency on Indian National Congress ticket. Sharmila is a key contestant, and played a major role in understanding the current political atmosphere of Andhra Pradesh.

Sharmila is the daughter of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, and the younger sister of Jagan Mohan Reddy, the current Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. She started to grab headlines when she started to campaign for the YSR Congress Party (Yuvajana Sramika Rythu), in the absence of her brother Jagan Mohan. The party was formed by Jagan Mohan in 2011, after he quit the Congress party after the death of their father in a helicopter crash.

In 2021, citing political difference with her brother, she left the YSR Congress Party. She said that there is no presence of the party in state of Telangana. She went on to announce that she would form a new political party in Telangana on 8 July, the date of her father’s birthday. Before launching the party, she also started to campaign against Bharat Rashtra Samithi, the incumbent party in the state during the time.

On the said, Sharmila launched her own party, named YSR Telangana Party. In November last year she declared that her party will not contest the Telangana legislative assembly election. By acknowledging the presence of Indian National Congress, she said her party’s aim is not to undermine the grand old party, but to support if the party assume power. On January 2024, Sharmila merged the YSR Telangana Party with the Indian National Congress. Soon after joining the party, she was appointed as the president of the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee.

After gaining ticket to contest from the Kadapa constituency, which is a bastion of the YS family, which she belongs to, Sharmila widely campaigned against the sitting MP and YSR Congress Party candidate Y S Avinash Reddy, who is the prime accused in the murder of Vivekananda Reddy, who is the former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, and Sharmila’s uncle.

With Sharmila contesting for Congress, this is the first time a YSR family member contesting from outside the YSR Congress Party since the bifurcation of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. And is first time in 35 years two members of the YSR family vying for MP seat.