The meeting between firebrand journalist-turned-Backward Classes advocate Chintapandu Naveen, popularly known as Teenmaar Mallanna, and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leaders K T Rama Rao (KTR) and T Harish Rao in the assembly premises on Monday has become a hot topic in media circles.
This development comes shortly after Teenmaar Mallanna was suspended from the Congress party a few days ago for highlighting loopholes in the BC caste survey.
BRS leaders, particularly KTR, condemned his suspension, sparking speculation that Mallanna might join the BRS for his political survival.
His recent meeting with KTR and Harish Rao in the assembly lobbies, where he urged them to address BC issues in the House, has further fueled these rumors, suggesting that he is being courted by the BRS.
However, not long ago, Mallanna was a vocal critic of KCR and his family. He contested against Palla Rajeshwar Reddy in the 2021 MLC elections, putting up a tough fight.
In March 2023, he was arrested and jailed for over a month. Several videos of Mallanna making derogatory remarks against KCR, KTR, and other BRS leaders are still in circulation.
This history is likely why the Congress initially admitted him into the party and facilitated his election as an MLC in the June 2024 by-elections.
Now, the same individual is seen cozying up to the very BRS leaders he once targeted, evidently for political survival.
“It wouldn’t be surprising if he now claims that only Velamas can deliver justice for the BCs,” remarked a senior journalist.
Sources reveal that Mallanna’s attacks on the Revanth Reddy government were not solely about BC issues. Instead, they stemmed from the chief minister’s refusal to entertain his lobbying efforts for a financial project.
A similar pattern is observed with journalist Revathi Pogadadanda, who runs a digital media channel. She was arrested for sharing a video of a farmer making abusive comments against the chief minister.
Like Mallanna, Revathi was a fierce critic of KCR and his government until 2023 and was arrested twice by the KCR administration.
Now, she is targeting the Revanth Reddy government, with BRS leaders openly supporting her. KTR and other MLAs even visited her in jail.
The reason behind KTR and his allies supporting Mallanna and Revathi, despite their past animosity toward the BRS, is clear.
The BRS seeks popular figures who can launch attacks against the Congress. Since Mallanna and Revathi have turned their criticism toward Revanth Reddy, KTR has extended his support and is allegedly managing their financial needs, according to sources.
