Another YSR Congress MLA Gottipati Ravi Kumar, who represents Addanki in the Assembly, joined the Telugu Desam Party on Wednesday. He was welcomed into the ruling party by its national president and Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
Mr. Ravi Kumar is the 14th MLA from YSR Congress to join the TDP in the last few months.
A large number of YSR Congress MPTCs and ZPTCs from Prakasam district also took the plunge into the TDP along with Mr. Ravi Kumar.
Mr. Naidu said that the main opposition party had been casting aspersions on the government without being in a position to substantiate its charges.
“I am thinking day and night about the ways to develop Andhra Pradesh and working hard with that objective. The Opposition unleashed a false propaganda that Rs.1 lakh crore has been devoured in various projects by corrupt elements with the tacit support from the government. They even made allegations against me in spite of my clean track record,” he observed in an indirect reference to YSRC.
Promising to do his best for the welfare of the people in his constituency under the leadership of the Chief Minister, Mr. Ravi Kumar said he was upset with the behaviour and attitude of Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy and could no longer continue in that party.
Prakasam district TDP president and Ongole MLA Damacharla Janardhan Rao said the party cadres would fully cooperate with Mr. Ravi Kumar and his followers for strengthening the TDP.
He observed that the desertions from the YSRC were due to Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy’s dictatorial functioning and failure to live up to the people’s expectations as Leader of the Opposition.
Mr. Ravi Kumar was elected MLA from the same constituency on behalf of Congress in the 2009 elections and from YSRC in the 2014 elections.
