It has been nearly 10 days since former Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president and senior leader Ponnala Lakshmaiah joined the Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS), days after he resigned from the Congress.
Soon after his resignation, KTR along with other senior BRS leaders, went to Ponnala’s residence and invited him into the party.
He later met BRS president and chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao at Pragati Bhavan and a day later, he formally joined the party at KCR’s public meeting in Jangaon.
After that, no BRS leader contacted Ponnala nor was he given any responsibility by the party president or working president in the upcoming elections.
He remained confined to his house, but nobody in the BRS has bothered to get in touch with him to seek his advice.
Though he is a prominent BC leader in the state, he was not given any job of attracting the BCs in the Jangaon constituency nor did anyone discuss any strategy with him.
BRS candidate for Jangaon Palla Rajeshwar Reddy thinks he is a close confidant of KCR and hence, there is no need for him to seek any advice from Ponnala, while his erstwhile rival in Jangaon Muthireddy Yadagiri Reddy doesn’t like him at all. So, Ponnala was kept at bay in the party.
Apparently, Ponnala is feeling suffocated in the BRS. Apparently realising this, some good old friends of him in the Congress – like Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and Mohd Shabbir Ali are said to be prevailing upon the former minister to return to the Congress.
They told him that he doesn’t have to bother about Revanth Reddy, whose wings would be cut after the Congress comes to power.
“You won’t get that kind of respect in the BRS; and having been in such a commanding position in the Congress, you don’t have to suffer any humiliation from KCR’s family,” Bhatti reportedly told him.
Another senior Congress leader from Andhra K V P Ramachandra Rao, too, advised Ponnala to come back into the Congress and he would get all the support from the high command.
“Forget Revanth Reddy and his antics. There is always a lot of respect for you in the Congress,” he reportedly told Ponnala.
However, the former PCC chief wants to wait till the elections are completed, since he would anyway not get the Congress ticket even if he returns now. Once the Congress comes to power, Ponnala can come back to the party and ask for a good position, sources said.
