Congress cajoling Krishnaiah into party

Hyderabad: The rumour mill is abuzz with news that the Congress is strongly persuading National BC Welfare Association president and MLA R Krishnaiah to leave Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and join the Congress party. According to sources, the Congress senior leaders are discussing proposals with him regarding the same.

Party State affairs Incharge R C Khuntia is in touch with Krishnaiah and urging him to join the Congress. However, Krishnaiah is yet to make up his mind on the proposal. According to the sources in the Congress, Khuntia met Krishnaiah at a hotel recently and discussed with him about the pros and cons of joining the Congress. The sources said that the Congress was ready to field him for the Lok Sabha elections from Malkajgiri.

The Congress which is trying hard to come to power in the State is pulling all its strings and trying to gain the support of various sections of the society. It had been supporting Madiga Reservation Porata Samithi (MRPS) president Manda Krishna Madiga on his fight for SC categorisation.

Party leaders are endeavouring to attract strong leaders of other parties to up their ante. The Congress already poached former TDP working president A Revanth Reddy and is expecting Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) senior leader Nagam Janardhan Reddy to join the party.

Congress leaders are hoping that few leaders of the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) will also join the party. The Congress had supported Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC) chairman M Kodandaram in the recent past and had been contemplating to form a broad platform against the ruling TRS.

The Congress had now set its eyes on Krishniah, who got good influence on the backward sections of Telangana. Krishnaiah is considered as a champion of BC cause and has held several agitations demanding government support for the upliftment of BCs. Krishnaiah had been demanding 50 per cent quota for the BCs in the Legislative Houses and had put several demands for the welfare and progress of the BCs before the State and the Central governments.

As the Congress feels that support of BCs would be quite essential to win the next elections it had also made several promises to the community. It wants a strong BC leader in the party to attract voters of the community.

Since Krishnaiah has good following among the BCs, his support for the Congress is vital. He could bring the BCs to the fold of the Congress, the sources said. On the other hand, the Congress leaders feel that the political future of Krishnaiah was bleak in the TDP, which is on the verge of extinction from the political scene in the State. Already the TDP is in tatters and leaders of the party are contemplating to join the Congress or the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS).

A leader of the Congress said that Krishniah was more inclined towards the Congress than the TRS. He had refused the offer of Rajya Sabha seat made by the TRS. However, the BC leader is weighing the pros and cons of joining the Congress.

Krishnaiah is unable to decide whether it would be better to join the Congress or to support it from the outside. He is also discussing joining the front to be formed by the Congress with his followers and continue as the leader of BCs.