The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : TRS rebel MLAs work actively for Congress

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jun 26, 2006

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

TRS rebel MLAs work actively for Congress

N. Rahul

Seat-sharing accord comes in handy for them

HYDERABAD: The local body elections seemed to have not only given an opportunity to rebel MLAs of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to come closer to the Congress but ditch their parent party.

The seat-sharing between the Congress and the TRS which was finalised on Saturday on the one hand facilitated the rebel MLAs of the latter to openly work for the victory of Congress and on the other try to decimate the TRS in their respective constituencies.

Even otherwise, four rebel MLAs got their spouses and kith and kin join the Congress with much fanfare here last month.

Selection process

The rebels have also had an important say in the allotment of Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies (ZPTCs) and selection of Congress candidates for seats under their belt. They insisted that the ZPTCs should go to the Congress at the expense of the TRS.

Take the case of TRS MLA of Parkal in Warangal district B. Shara Rani.

She pressed for allotment of Parkal, Chityal and Bhupalapalli mandals in her constituency to the Congress and succeeded in that. She also saw to it that her follower, Gopinath, was given the Congress ticket for the Parkal ZPTC.

Similarly, other rebel TRS MLAs -- D. Srinivas Rao, T. Jayaprakash Reddy, G. Mukund Reddy, S. Santosh Reddy and M. Satyanarayana Reddy -- also wielded considerable influence in the allotment of ZPTCs and selection of candidates to represent Congress in their segments. The effort was to accommodate their own followers but in the name of the Congress.

Mr. Mukund Reddy has also confided that his followers were selected as ZPTC candidates of the Congress in Peddapalli, Sultanabad, Srirampur and Odela mandals of Peddapalli segment represented by him.

The Parkal MLA made no secret of her displeasure against the TRS saying she wanted to wipe out the party in her constituency.

Another MLA said he would work against the TRS because he mostly enjoyed the support of the Congress cadre.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh