It cannot be denied that Telangana Congress has a spring in its step after the party’s recent assembly election victory in neighbouring Karnataka. It seems to have given a boost to the morale of the cadre here. Two tall leaders, Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and Komatireddy Venkata Reddy, came together during a padayatra recently and declared that the party’s victory in the Telugu state was certain. A change in tactic by the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi, with its leaders attacking the Congress and not the BJP, has given rise to speculation that the pink party may have already dismissed the saffron outfit as a worthy opposition in the state. Further, rumours about discontent in the BJP local unit seem to be favouring the grand old party.
In such a scenario, there is another manoeuvre that state Congress leaders want to pull off to ride this positive wave: make party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra contest from Medak. Her grandmother, former PM Indira Gandhi, had contested from this seat in 1980 during the general elections and the result was spectacular. The Congress had won 41 out of the 42 Lok Sabha seats in united Andhra Pradesh that year. The cadre here believes that Priyanka too can pull off such a feat next year.
Speaking to News18, Shyam Mohan Anantula, chairman of the Intellectual Cell of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee, said: “The Congress is the only party in the opposition that has a grassroots-level presence in the state. BRS is losing its appeal due to rampant corruption and other empty promises. Our party has a traditional voter base among the OBC and SC communities. Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra and Priyanka’s appeal, combined with the victory in Karnataka, are turning the wind in favour of the Congress. When Indira Gandhi contested the general elections from Medak in 1980, there was a landslide victory. You can imagine the kind of influence that Indira ji had over the electorate. We believe that Priyanka ji has the same aura and charisma.”
Congress leader Ananthula Madan Mohan was instrumental in making Indira Gandhi contest from Medak, he added. “He was the founding president of Telangana Praja Samiti. In 1970, he contested a bypoll from Siddipet and won. Later, he joined the Congress and served as a minister in the cabinets of Marri Chenna Reddy, PV Narasimha Rao, Bhavanam Venkatarama Reddy, and others. He, along with other Congress leaders, had convinced Indira ji to contest from Medak,” he said.
The matter has been discussed in the state unit and TPCC president Revanth Reddy has suggested that, if not Medak, Priyanka must consider contesting from any Lok Sabha seat in Telangana.
A letter to this effect has been written to party chief Mallikarjun Kharge and copies have been sent to Sonia, Rahul, Priyanka, and other state leaders.
Giving more reasons why Priyanka should contest from Telangana, 62-year-old Anantula said: “Sonia ji is considered ‘Telangana Thalli (mother)’ because it is due to her efforts that Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated. In that connection, Priyanka ji is the daughter of Telangana and she has a strong appeal here.”
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