Telangana MP A Revanth Reddy's padayatra exposes Congress fault lines

Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president N Uttam Kumar Reddy and Congress Legislature Party leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka stayed away from the public meeting organised at Raviryal for the grand culmination of Reddy’s march

The 10-day-long padayatra or foot-march campaign by Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee working president and party MP A Revanth Reddy ended on Tuesday, exposing serious differences in the state unit of the party, said leaders aware of the developments.

Revanth Reddy's 10-day-long padayatra ended with a public meeting on Tuesday. (HT photo)

Reddy’s padayatra-- The Rythu Bharosa Yatra or the march supporting farmers seeking the withdrawal of the controversial farm-reform laws ended at Tukkuguda on the outskirts of Hyderabad, from where he took out a tractor rally up to Raviryala, where a public meeting was held in the evening. However, several senior leaders of the Telangana Congress didn’t attend the programme as they were reportedly under instruction from the Pradesh Congress Committee president to boycott it, said a party leader, who didn’t wish to be named.

“How can he decide on taking out the padayatra without even informing the state party leadership or the high command in Delhi?” the leader said, quoting the PCC chief.

Reddy’s padyatra began after a rally of farmers at Achampet in Nagarkurnool district on February 7. Reddy, who represents Malkajgiri parliamentary constituency, walked through Nagarkurnool, Mahabubnagar and Ranga Reddy districts covering a distance of 130 km before reaching Tukkuguda.

Pradesh Congress Committee president N Uttam Kumar Reddy and Congress Legislature Party leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka stayed away from the public meeting organised at Raviryal for the grand culmination of Reddy’s march. All India Congress Committee in-charge of Telangana, Manickam Tagore too, dropped out at the last moment under pressure from the PCC leadership, the Congress leader quoted above said.

The boycott call was apparently given since Reddy’s rally did not have the permission from the high command.

Revanth Reddy is seen as one of the front-runners for the PCC chief post ever since Uttam Kumar Reddy offered to step down after the party’s poor show in the GHMC elections in December last.

Though majority of the party leaders have extended support to Revanth Reddy as the next PCC chief, several senior leaders opposed saying he was relatively a new-comer to the party – Reddy joined the Congress in 2017. Veteran Congress leader and ex-MP V Hanumanth Rao even threatened to resign if Revanth Reddy was made the PCC chief, said a senior Congress leader.

Despite the boycott by the seniors, many Congress leaders attended the rally on Tuesday. They include former ministers Mohd Ali Shabbir, Konda Surekha and S Rajaiah, ex-MPs Balaram Naik, Mallu Ravi and Suresh Shetkar, PCC working presidents Kusuma Kumar and Ponnam Prabhakar and MLA D Sitakka, besides several ex-MLAs and party office-bearers.

AICC spokesperson Dasoju Sravan, who also attended the rally, said there was no need for taking permission from the high command for such padayatra and rallies, as was demanded by certain seniors. “You don’t need to take permission to kill a serpent. It has to be done instantaneously. Revanth Reddy did the same. Such efforts would only strengthen the party,” he said.