Among those who once shone brightly in the BJP’s political landscape was former Rajya Sabha MP GVL Narasimha Rao.
In 2018, he was nominated to the Rajya Sabha from the BJP’s northern quota, and since then he had been active in Andhra Pradesh politics, choosing Visakhapatnam as his base.
From 2020 onwards, he worked extensively for the party in the region, even preparing long-term strategies to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Visakhapatnam.
However, his plans fell apart at the last minute. As part of the seat-sharing arrangement, the BJP ended up getting Anakapalli instead of Visakhapatnam, and the ticket went to CM Ramesh from Kadapa.
This dashed GVL’s dream of contesting as an MP. He had also hoped to be considered for an MLC position in the state, but that went to Somu Veerraju instead.
It is said that GVL also made a strong push for the post of BJP state president. But the party, wanting to give the position to a BC leader, chose Madhav instead. Since then, GVL has become less visible in the political scene, with many asking where he has gone.
Some within the party believe that the perception of him being sympathetic to the YSRCP has cost him positions.
Reports also suggest that certain groups within the state BJP have deliberately sidelined him.
While GVL maintains close ties with national-level leaders, his influence within the state unit appears to have diminished significantly.