Telugu Desam Party district president Gandra Satyanarayana Rao resigned from the primary membership of the party and joined the Telangana Rashtra Samithi on Wednesday. This has struck another blow to the TDP that once was a strong party in the erstwhile undivided Warangal district.
Mr. Rao, who enjoys mass support and contested on BJP ticket in the last Assembly elections, had lost narrowly. The Congress and TRS tried to rope him in and he joined the TRS with thousands of his followers. His joining certainly boosts the chances of the ruling party in the ensuing elections.
The TDP has become weak with one after the other deserting it for their political prospects. The party also lost its loyal cadre as they followed the suit. Former MLAs Sitakka and Vem Narender Reddy had followed A. Revanth Reddy to join the Congress party earlier this month.
After the formation of separate Telangana, the TRS was successful in luring the MLAs who won as TDP candidates into its camp. Senior leader, Palakurthy MLA Errabelli Dayakar Rao too left the party. The TDP lost its cadre everywhere except in Mulugu and Bhupalapalli constituencies. Ms. Sitakka and Mr. Satyanarayana were able to keep the party cadre intact in their constituencies until they parted ways with the party.
When Mr. Revanth Reddy joined the Congress, people thought all the TDP leaders from Warangal would follow him. Even Mr. Satyanarayana was set to join the Congress. However, the ruling TRS party leaders started making the moves to attract him and their efforts proved fruitful.
Mr. Rao in his resignation letter to TDP supremo and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu expressed his discontent over the way the party treated him since his joining the party in 1983. “I missed many opportunities yet still served the party with utmost commitment,” he said.
Mr. Rao worked as a ZPTC, party general secretary, party president of erstwhile undivided Warangal district among others.
