Jagga Reddy back in Congress fold, vows to take on KCR

GHAR WAPSI

Regrets brief association with BJP

Hyderabad: In what comes as a major boost for the Opposition Congress in the State, former MLA Turupu Jayaprakash Reddy, popularly known as Jagga Reddy, returned to the Congress fold at a formal function held at Gandhi Bhavan in Hyderabad on Monday.

With much fanfare, the leader, along with thousands of his supporters from Sangareddy, was given a rousing welcome by the TPCC leaders into the party. His supporters, mostly youngsters, remained buoyant during the public meeting attended by most of the State’s top party leaders.

While receiving membership of the Congress after resigning from the BJP, Jagga Reddy described joining BJP during general elections as one of his biggest wrong steps, similar to his earlier stint with the TRS. He held that top leaders like M Venkaiah Naidu and other leaders tried to trap him by luring into the party.

“I don’t know why I joined the BJP at the time of elections. It was like being possessed by some ghost,” he lamented. Given the popularity he enjoys in Sangareddy, he challenged the K Chandrashekar Rao government by pointing out that not a single Minister would dare to enter the town without his consent.

He cautioned the TRS chief not to resort to witch-hunting of political adversaries, as rivals might grab power from him in the next elections. He questioned Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, as to why his government was least concerned about 800 farmer suicides in the State. “Why don’t you feel ashamed over the spate of suicides in Telangana, being at the helm of affairs?” he asked.

TPCC chief N Uttam Kumar Reddy described his induction into the party as major step for challenging the Chief Minister and his decisions in his home turf. He held that representatives of the ruling party failed to console the families of farmers, who committed suicides. By joining forces with other social groups, the Congress would take up fight against the ruling TRS in a democratic way, he said.

AICC secretary R C Khuntia, TPCC working president Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, Leader of Opposition in Assembly K Jana Reddy, Leader of Opposition in Legislative Council Mohammed Ali Shabbir, former PCC president Ponnala Lakshmaiah, former deputy chief minister Damodar Rajanarasimha, former ministers D K Aruna, V Sunitha Laxma Reddy, D Sridhar Babu and others spoke on the occasion.