Of loafers and duffers

Hyderabad: Information Technology Minister KT Rama Rao has stirred up a storm with his comment that the “Congress is a loafer” party and that its president Rahul Gandhi is ‘pappu’.

A couple of days ago, while interacting with media persons informally, Rama Rao made the comment in the context of TSPCC president N Uttam Kumar Reddy daring KTR if KCR's entire family would take political ‘sanyas’ if the Congress comes to power in the state in the next elections in 2019.

Though Rama Rao did not call anyone in the Congress a loafer, the leaders of the grand old party took umbrage to the use of the word and his description of Rahul Gandhi as ‘pappu’ and launched a frontal attack on the TRS, asking whether even KCR too was a ‘loafer’ since he too was originally from the Congress stock.

On Friday, Congress Legislature Party leader K Jana Reddy joined his colleagues in attacking the pink party. He said Rama Rao’s choice of such words only showed his political arrogance and mean mentality.

Jana Reddy, in his inimitable style, felt that use of objectionable words would lower the values of politics. Accompanied by leaders’ J Geetha Reddy, T Jeevan Reddy, the CLP leader, who is careful about the words that he uses while attacking his adversaries, said “I always remind my colleagues of the importance of sophistication, culture and proper attitude in politics”.

He advised his colleagues to ignore the outbursts of KCR or any TRS leader in a language that is impious or profane. “There is no need to match them (TRS leaders) in the demeaning words they use. Let us act in a dignified way”, he said, adding “Don’t think we cannot speak the language that you speak. But we are not using it because we are decent and dignified”, he said.

Geetha Reddy found fault with KTR for using what she described as ‘filthy’ language and wondered how KCR’s family could use objectionable words, forgetting the fact that KCR had once touched the feet of Sonia Gandhi after formation of Telangana state along with his family members.

She took exception to another word that KTR used – ‘pappu’ - for describing Congress president Rahul Gandhi who in fact had given jitters to the BJP in Gujarat elections. Not to be out done, the TRS leaders hit back at the Congress, defending KTR. Palla Rajeshwar Reddy justified KTR’s description of Uttam Kumar Reddy as ‘daddamma’ (nincompoop).

Reddy said that there was nothing wrong in calling one ‘daddamma’ if one cannot protect the interest of Telangana. Another leader Karne Prabhakar said KTR had used the word loafer because it aptly described the party and its leaders because the party was coming in the way in the execution of development works.