Senior Congress leader and five-time MLA Kanna Lakshminarayana created a flutter by joining the Bharatiya Janata Party in New Delhi on Tuesday. He was formally admitted into the party in the presence of party national president Amit Shah and other senior leaders.
The former Minister has been keeping a low profile for the past four months after losing elections and devoted his time to personal and family matters.
Mr. Lakshminarayana, who was once in the race to become Chief Minister of the previous Congress government, bade good bye to the party he has been associated for the last 35 years. With the quitting of Kanna, Congress suffered a big jolt in coastal Andhra at a time when the party’s fortunes are at its lowest ebb.
Powerful leader Kanna, as he is popularly called in the district, has been a powerful leader from Kapu community and has risen steadily in the Congress since becoming an MLA from Pedakurapadu constituency in 1989 general elections. Since then, he has never lost an election and had gone to hold several key portfolios in Congress governments.
A loyalist of late NG Ranga, Kanna was close to former Chief Ministers N. Janardhana Reddy, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy and K. Rosaiah. Kanna has been a close aide of former Union Minister Kavuri Sambasiva Rao, who had already joined BJP.
The former minister’s close followers are tight lipped about this development and have said that they had no idea.
Mr. Lakshminarayana has a sizeable number of followers in Guntur town and could play a major role in BJP’s quest for gaining a foot hold in Guntur in the ensuing civic body elections.
