Even if they fall at KCR’s feet, defectors won’t be taken back: KTR

Hyderabad: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president KT Rama Rao on Friday came down heavily on party Rajya Sabha MP K Keshava Rao and Ghanpur MLA Kadiyam Srihari for quitting the party amid a difficult period, despite having held multiple positions inside the party in the last decade.

KTR spoke at the Chevella Parliamentary meeting at the Telangana Bhavan and made sensational comments that the party’s doors would never again be open to defectors. Referring to the resignation of former minister Patnam Mahender Reddy and Chevella MP G Ranjith Reddy as acts of treachery and double-dealing, the BRS working president urged party cadres to teach a befitting lesson for them in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

‘Made promises never to defect’

KTR said, “After winning 39 seats in the Assembly elections, Ranjith Reddy called me and said that he should go to the election in advance. If the first meeting was held in Chevella and the party declared him as a candidate, he would start working and win in Chevella. Ranjith Reddy himself told the media that he would contest from Chevella. Similar is the case with Mahender Reddy, I even cautioned him of rumours that he is going to quit the BRS.” Both the leaders pretended to be loyal to the party and promised not to defect to any party under any circumstances, he added.

The BRS working president further said that he foolishly considered the remarks of Mahender Reddy and Ranjith Reddy considering their political careers. However, they moved to Congress after a fortnight.

“The duo would attempt to get back to BRS, when we came to power in the state. We refuse to allow them to become members of the party, no matter how much they beg and bow down to party supremo K Chandrashekar Rao,” KTR said. During the meeting, Kasani Gyaneshwar, the Chevella BRS candidate, received praise from KTR for dedicating his life to serving the underprivileged and fighting for their rights. He claimed that Gnaneshwar joined the BRS at a time when others were leaving it and that securing his resounding victory over Chevella was crucial.

Launching a scathing attack on chief minister A Revanth Reddy, KTR cast doubt on his political affiliations and asked him to make it clear whether prime minister Narendra Modi or Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was his ally. In addition, KTR also took a jibe at the CM for declining his invitation to contest from the Malkajgiri Parliamentary constituency.

Congress counter attacks KTR

TPCC senior vice president G Niranjan alleged that former chief minister KCR was responsible for the current political developments in Telangana state. "After coming to power KCR encouraged defections and corrupted politics without any ethical values, now people do not care or sympathize with him irrespective of his hue and cry. People think that this is the appropriate punishment for KCR," he said.

Niranjan further said that by claiming that he has brought the seperate statehood for Telangana, KCR grabbed the power and resorted to several unilateral decisions and thrown the State into disarray. He was in a myth and considered that his position is permanent. His misdeeds are coming out one by one and must be punished.

Taking a jibe at KTR, Harish Rao for blowing the old trumpet as that KCR brought Telangana, Niranjan said that people don't believe those words anymore. Now the people of Telangana considering KCR and his family as traitors of Telangana. In the past KCR encouraged the leaders of other parties to betray their parties and to join BRS, now they have no right to criticize those who have left the party as traitors, he said.

"This is evident how the parties and Governments bicker and collapse if they neglects the interests of the people and cadre after coming to the Power. This should be a lesson to one and all," the TPCC senior vice president said.