Ahead of Telangana Legislative Council elections for Assembly Constituency, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad has accused the Telangana Rashtra Samiti of poaching MLAs by all unfair means.
The TRS resorted to the practice with not only the Opposition Congress and Telugu Desam members but also the lone independent in the 120-member Assembly. The Congress is left with 17 out of 21 members and the TDP has 11 out of 15 members who were elected on the respective party tickets last year. The lone independent member Donti Madhava Reddy is an associate member of the Congress but there were reports that the TRS was in touch with him.
Addressing a press conference here along with Rajya Sabha member and All India Congress Committee general secretary Vayalar Ravi, Mr. Azad accused the TRS of poaching though there was no need because it had absolute majority in the Assembly. The party adopted unprincipled policies in utter disregard for democracy.
Asked if the `poaching' was targeted at the 17 Congress and one independent member, Mr. Azad said that he was referring to the four members each who had left Congress and TDP in the last one year. He said that he did not mean in the present context. The Congress reposed complete confidence on its MLAs.
Mr. Azad also said he, Mr. Ravi and AICC Secretary Ramachandra Kuntia, who was also present, had come down specially to ensure the victory of the party candidate Akula Lalita. He denied there was any resentment in the party against Ms. Lalita's candidature.
The Congress took the election seriously because the ruling TRS totally neglected women by not giving them representation in the Cabinet. The Congress gave Cabinet berths to five women in 2009 but one of them deserted the party subsequently.
The TRS rode to power making tall promises but went back on them, he asserted. The maximum period generally given to a political party was one year to deliver goods and that was over. It was now time for Congress to expose the governments both at the Centre and State, he opined. "You will see what the Congress will do in four years".
Mr. Azad hit out at the open letter of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to mark completion of one year in office saying it was far from truth. He particularly targeted Mr. Modi's remarks "runaway prices immediately brought under control", "languishing economy was rejuvenated" and "firm steps taken against black money". The Congress will contest each and every word of the letter in Parliament, he said.
Earlier, Mr. Azad inducted Ms. Nerella Sarada as the chairperson of Telangana Mahila Congress at a function at Gandhi Bhavan. The Telangana Congress Committee president N. Uttam Kumar Reddy, working president Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and Leaders of Opposition in Assembly and Legilslative Council K. Jana Reddy and Mohammed Ali Shabbir respectively were present.
Mr. Azad said that it was rare to find an outgoing president and incoming president being rewarded. Ms. Lalita as the outgoing president is the candidate in Council election while the incoming president in any case gets the post. He said that it was a long struggle for Ms. Sarada after she was denied a chance to contest elections to the Assembly, Council and Parliament in the past.
