When 49-year-old Palvai Sravanthi Reddy filed her nomination for the Congress party in the high-stakes Munugode byelection in Telangana two weeks ago, she was determined to do two things – carry on her father Palvai Govardhan Reddy's legacy in the constituency and take on the bigwigs of the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The Munugode bypoll, which is to be held on Thursday, 3 November, was necessitated after Komatreddy Rajagopal Reddy, who was the Congress MLA in the constituency, defected to the BJP. He is now the saffron party's nominee in the byelection. The TRS, meanwhile, has fielded former MLA K Prabhakar Reddy.
Despite the two leaders' history in politics, Sravanthi hopes to win the bypoll to amplify the voices of women in Telangana. Taking out a door-to-door campaign on 27 October, she was quoted by UNI as saying:
"Women are normally considered weak in electoral politics. They get very few opportunities, be it party tickets or big positions. Major political parties usually prefer a male candidate over a woman in difficult situations, like the one prevailing in the Munugode constituency. But the Congress party trusted my capabilities and nominated me as a candidate. My victory in the byelections will set a new benchmark and it will become a symbol of women empowerment."
So, who is Palvai Sravanthi Reddy? Where does her politics figure in the landscape of Munugode?
Lawyer by Profession, a Politician by Birth
Born in Idikuda village in Nalgonda district, Sravanthi grew up watching her father Govardhan Reddy's tryst with politics. Govardhan Reddy was a minister and five-time MLA in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh. He was a Rajya Sabha MP before his death in 2017.
An All India Congress Committee (AICC) member and a practising advocate at the Telangana High Court, Sravanthi first canvassed for her father in the year 1994. She actively entered politics in 1999 when she served as a campaign manager for her father when he was contesting from Munugode.
She contested the 2014 Assembly elections in Telangana as an independent candidate and came second with 27,441 votes by defeating BJP candidate G Manohar Reddy.
"Munugode voters have known me since I was a child. I used to campaign with my late father who represented this constituency as MLA several times. I was badly missing my father when I started the campaign this time."Palvai Sravanthi Reddy, as quoted by India Today
Speaking to The New Indian Express on 10 October, Sravanthi said that "as the daughter of a leader who lived his life for the people of the people," she intended to continue his legacy in politics.
'Empowering Women, Ending Liquor Politics'
Sravanthi says that "her victory in the byelections would lead to a new era of women empowerment not only in Telangana but the entire country," according to UNI.
"Unlike TRS and BJP, the Congress party is not distributing money and liquor to lure voters. We are asking the people to vote for Congress based on ethics, morals, and ideology. Congress party is not trying to impose a leader, but asking people to select their servant who can represent their problems in the Assembly. My victory will change the overall perspective about the role of women in electoral politics."Palvai Sravanthi, as quoted by UNI
She also ridiculed the BJP and the TRS for deploying "a huge army of campaigners and investing all their resources to defeat an ordinary woman like me." She added that as a woman, she had a deeper understanding of the needs of common households. "I will prove myself to be a good public representative," Sravanthi said.
Women Leaders Voice Their Support
On 24 October, Sravanthi lodged a complaint with the police after her convoy was allegedly attacked as she was campaigning in Munugode. After the alleged incident, several woman Congress leaders came out in support of Sravanthi.
Senior Congress leader D Anasuya, also known as Seethakka, condemned the alleged attack on 25 October and said that she was fighting against the BJP and TRS like 'Rudramma Devi' (a queen of the Kakatiya dynasty) without showing any signs of fear.
TPCC working president and former minister J Geetha Reddy also appreciated Sravanti for running an effective campaign amid "the threats of physical attacks by BJP and TRS leaders."
"Shravanti is proving to the world that women have enough courage to fight against the most powerful men who depend on money and muscle power. She is drawing inspiration from great leaders like former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and Congress president Sonia Gandhi to stay focused on her campaign," Reddy said in a media statement.
(With inputs from UNI, India Today, and TNIE.)
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