A day after AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh asserted that people were leaving the party for various considerations, yet another Congress MLA left the party and joined the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti.
On Wednesday, Congress MLA from Makthal Chittem Rammohan Reddy, brother of former Minister D. K. Aruna, formally joined the TRS in the presence of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao. With this, the number of Congress MLAs crossing over to the TRS has reached five.
Mr. Rammohan Reddy told reporters that he decided to join the TRS for the development of his constituency. “I am impressed by the good work being done by the TRS Government and, in particular, the Chief Minister, whose commitment to irrigation projects is great,” he said.
Sources maintained that a senior TRS Minister from Mahabubnagar was instrumental in drawing Mr. Rammohan Reddy to the TRS fold. He had reportedly spoken to another influential minister in the KCR Cabinet and ensured that decks were cleared for his entry into the TRS on Wednesday morning in the presence of the Chief Minister.
Speaking to The Hindu , Ms. Aruna said Rammohan Reddy’s decision to desert the Congress party was against the principles her father late Chittem Narsi Reddy had espoused. “He has no right to claim that he joined the TRS to fulfil the dreams of my father,” the former Minister said adding that she had consistently counselled him against taking any decision to quit the Congress.
She admitted that it was a shock to see Rammohan Reddy taking the extreme decision without even consulting the family or her. “I cannot say what compelled him to desert Congress party but one thing is sure, people of his constituency are not going to hail his action,” she said.
Asked specifically, if the speculation that she would also follow suit, Ms. Aruna said there was no question of her quitting the Congress party. “I am going to stay put in the Congress come what may,” she asserted.
Congress sources do not rule out more defections in the coming days. Names of a former minister along with at least three other Congress legislators from Nalgonda, Mahabubnagar and Ranga Reddy districts are doing the rounds. “There is increasing pressure on our MLAs to join the TRS. The statements of some legislators praising the Government are a cause of concern for us,” a senior Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee functionary said.
For the record, Congress party had won 21 seats in the 119 member Telangana Assembly in the 2014 election. Party MLAs – Kankaiah (Yellendu), Yadaiah (Chevella), Vithal Reddy (Mudhole) and D.S.Redya Naik (Dornakal) had joined the TRS in recent times.
