Who is Nara Lokesh, the MBA from Stanford, behind TDP’s resurgence in Andhra Pradesh?

Nara Lokesh, son of Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, took oath as a minister in the state government. The swearing-in ceremony of the new CM and his Council of Ministers was held on 12 June at Kesarapalli IT Park near Gannavaram Airport on the outskirts of Vijayawada.

Lokesh, 41, is expected to be inducted into Naidu’s Cabinet. A senior TDP leader told Businessline last week that Naidu’s son will be “will be given a key portfolio in view of his contribution to the party coming back to power and also increasing its popularity”.

Who is Nara Lokesh? How did he make a turnaround in Andhra politics?

Nara Lokesh

Nara Lokesh, the TDP general secretary, completed his MBA from Stanford University.

He was elected as a member of the Legislative Council (MLC) in 2017. Lokesh served as the IT minister in the last TDP government (2014-19). He also held the Panchayati Raj and Rural Development portfolios in the Naidu Cabinet between 2017 and 2019.

Lokesh’s induction had sparked criticism as he was not directly elected by the people but was a member of the Legislative Council, noted India Today.

In the 2019 Assembly elections, Lokesh lost from the Mangalagiri constituency to Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) candidate Alla Rama Krishna Reddy by a margin of 5,700 votes.

That year, the YSRCP ousted the TDP from power, winning 151 of 175 Assembly seats. Naidu’s party was reduced to just 23 Assembly seats and three Lok Sabha seats.

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Nara Lokesh’s comeback in Andhra politics

Lokesh is being credited for the TDP’s resurgence in Andhra Pradesh.

Despite being defeated in the Mangalagiri Assembly seat in 2019, Naidu’s son continued his work in the constituency and gained the public’s trust, as per The News Minute (TNM) report.

And his dedication has borne fruits. He won the seat by a margin of 91,413 votes – the highest margin in the state, defeating YRSCP’s M Lavanya.

With his triumph, the TDP won the key Mangalagiri seat for the first time after nearly four decades.

In 1985, TDP’s Koteswara Rao had bagged the constituency when party founder NT Rama Rao was the state’s chief minister. After the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, the Mangalagiri seat was held by the Congress and later by the YSR Congress party, reported TNM.

మంగళగిరి నియోజకవర్గం ఆత్మకూరు, ఇప్పటం, వడ్డేశ్వరం గ్రామాల్లో నిర్వహించిన రచ్చబండ కార్యక్రమాల్లో పాల్గొన్నాను. గ్రామాల్లో ప్రజలు ఎదుర్కొంటున్న అనేక సమస్యలు నా దృష్టికి తీసుకువచ్చారు. వైసిపి ప్రభుత్వం అన్యాయంగా పేదల ఇల్లు కూల్చిందని ఆవేదన వ్యక్తం చేశారు. ప్రజా ప్రభుత్వం ఏర్పడిన… pic.twitter.com/tHrgDOtDGw

— Lokesh Nara (@naralokesh) May 10, 2024

Not just Lokesh, but the TDP, which formed a pre-poll alliance with Pawan Kalyan’s JanaSena Party (JSP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), returned with a thumping mandate in the simultaneous Assembly and Lok Sabha elections in Andhra.

The TDP clinched 135 of the 175 Assembly seats. Kalyan’s JSP won all 21 Assembly segments it contested and the BJP secured eight seats. The YSRCP was reduced to 11 Assembly seats.

In the Lok Sabha polls, Naidu’s TDP got 16 of the 25 Lok Sabha seats in Andhra, while the YSRCP won just four. The BJP bagged three and the JSP the remaining two.

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Nara Lokesh’s role in TDP victory

Political analysts attribute several factors to the TDP’s remarkable comeback in Andhra Pradesh, including the tie-up with the BJP and JSP.

The anti-incumbency sentiment against Jagan Mohan Reddy’s government worked in favour of the TDP alliance which consolidated the anti-YSRCP votes.

Lokesh’s role in the TDP storming to power in Andhra cannot be overlooked. His over 3,000-km padyatra “Yuva Galam” rebranded his image, experts say.

Lokesh kickstarted his 400-day foot march from Kuppam to Srikakulam in January last year.  His associates told Indian Express that the yatra was “a learning and a Stanford moment” for Lokesh.

According to an India Today piece, the padyatra facilitated Lokesh to engage with the public, listen to their grievances and impart his party’s policies and goals. “During the Yatra, every time a person spelt out the problems she/he faced, Lokesh would keenly jot them down on a piece of paper,” the piece added.

Speaking to Indian Express, the Mangalagiri MLA said, “My padayatra changed me fundamentally as a person and made me humbler and grounded, and eager to help people”.

As per senior journalist TS Sudhir’s opinion piece for India Today, Yuva Galam padyatra helped transform Lokesh’s image in the public, just like Bharat Jodo Yatra did for Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

Before embarking on the padyatra, Lokesh had ensured a successful membership drive, adding lakhs to the TDP ranks, with the aid of digital technology. As per India Today, this feat not only “cemented Nara Lokesh as an efficient political organiser but also demonstrated his ability to leverage technology for political mobilisation.”

Lokesh’s biggest battle came last September when his father and TDP chief Naidu was arrested in an alleged AP Skill Development Corporation scam.

He rose to the challenge, halted his yatra, and took over the reins of the party, noted India Today. It was Lokesh who kept the TDP flock together amid uncertainty over Naidu’s future ahead of elections.

“Lokesh knocked on all doors – from Andhra to Delhi – to ensure his father’s release. Those were tough times but he held the party together,” a senior TDP leader told Indian Express.

After Naidu walked out of jail in October, Lokesh resumed his padyatra. According to India Today, it was then that he was also acknowledged as “No. 2 in the TDP”.

As the TDP has emerged as a key player in national politics by bagging the second-highest number of seats among the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) allies after the BJP, the party has decided to entrust Lokesh with some important responsibilities in the state as he is seen as an “accessible” face to the public, reported Indian Express.

Now, the TDP has the task of taking its allies the BJP and JSP along while fulfilling its poll promises. Lokesh told PTI that his party has offered “unconditional support” to the BJP-led  NDA, adding that the TDP will maintain a “symbiotic relationship” with the Centre.

Lokesh, who was once mocked as ‘Andhra Pappu’, has forced his critics to hold their tongues with the TDP’s massive victory and his rise as a seasoned politician.

With inputs from agencies