The exit of Telugu Deasam Party’s Telangana unit working president, A. Revanth Reddy, who held secret talks with Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi two weeks ago in New Delhi, may benefit the BJP in the state, which is looking forward to expanding its base.
After Revanth Reddy made up his mind to join the Congress, the remaining leaders of the TDP are now keen on aligning with the BJP. Reddy, who was arrested in the cash for vote case during the legislative council elections two years ago, has caused commotion in the TDP circles by calling on Rahul Gandhi in Delhi on 9 October. He told the Congress leaders, including AICC secretary R.C. Kuntia, who is in charge of Telangana, that a large number of TDP leaders would be coming with him.
Revanth Reddy was supposed to join the Congress after a couple of weeks at a grand rally addressed by Rahul Gandhi, post the latter’s appointment as Congress president sometime in November. Meanwhile, Revanth has been meeting senior Telangana Congress leaders, who are not too happy at the news of his joining the Congress, and trying to persuade them that he would not be a threat to them.
In Telangana, the TDP as of now has only Revanth and two other MLAs, R. Krishnaiah and S. Venkata Veeraiah. Revanth Reddy, a bitter opponent of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, announced after his meeting with Rahul Gandhi that the TDP joining hands with the Congress was the only way to defeat the TRS government in Telangana.
However, Telangana TDP president L. Ramana and former minister Motkupalli Narsimhulu have accused Revanth of compromising himself for personal interest. TDP’s national president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has stripped Revanth of all posts but has allowed him to continue as an MLA. Naidu, who held a meeting with party leaders at Lake View Guest House in the city, in which Revanth too was present, agreed to a proposal by the senior leaders that they should align with the BJP in the next polls. Senior TDP leader Narsimhulu said that the party cannot afford to align with the Congress. “Our party was founded by late NTR only to unseat the Congress from power in 1983; we cannot go back on our core ideology. If necessary, we will join hands with the TRS but not the Congress,” he said.