Has Chief Minister Revanth Reddy completely lost control over the Congress party? This is now the subject of discussion within Congress circles. During the last Assembly elections, Revanth Reddy managed to keep the Congress party largely united and moving in the same direction. However, questions are now being raised over whether he has lost his grip on the party. By making a unilateral announcement without any coordination with the PCC president, has Chief Minister Revanth Reddy ended up embarrassing himself? This debate is gaining momentum within the party. Recently, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy launched a strong attack on BRS chief and former Chief Minister KCR, alleging that the Telangana government has spent more than Rs. 22 crore over the past 1,000 days on KCR, including his salary and security expenses. Revanth Reddy alleged that KCR had confined himself to his farmhouse and had not spoken even a single word about the state or its people.
At the same time, Revanth Reddy called upon Youth Congress workers and the broader Congress cadre to conduct bike rallies at mandal and district headquarters, demanding KCR’s resignation. He also announced that a protest would be held near Indira Park in Hyderabad on September 6 and asked party workers to organize protests at the mandal and district levels before then. What is surprising, however, is that Congress leaders and party workers appear to have completely ignored Chief Minister Revanth Reddy’s call. There are reportedly no significant programmes organized anywhere in Telangana by Congress workers against KCR in response to the Chief Minister’s appeal. Across the state, only a few sporadic programmes were held in areas such as Gajwel and Siddipet. Apart from these, there has been virtually no response to Revanth Reddy’s call anywhere in the state. “If the party genuinely wants to organize a programme against the opposition, there should be a meeting with the PCC president and such programmes should be planned collectively. Who will pay attention if something is announced unilaterally at a public meeting?” a senior Congress leader reportedly questioned.
There is also a growing discussion within political circles that, following the damage caused by Sushmita Patel, the daughter of Minister Konda Surekha, many ministers themselves appear to have stopped taking Chief Minister Revanth Reddy seriously. Party sources say the situation could change to some extent if the Congress high command takes strict action against Minister Konda Surekha as well as Chinna Reddy. However, they warn that if the high command fails to act appropriately, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy could face a difficult period during the remaining two years of his tenure. Although Chief Minister Revanth Reddy has repeatedly said publicly that his combination with PCC president Mahesh Goud is going to be a “hit combination,” party sources claim that the gap between the two has widened considerably in recent times. According to ministers as well as Congress leaders, the primary reason for this is Revanth Reddy’s unilateral style of functioning. There is also growing concern within the party that, even after nearly three years in power, confusion continues to prevail both in the government and within the party. Politically, many believe that such a situation is not healthy for the Congress.