Raking up yet another controversy, Health Minister D.L. Ravindra Reddy on Monday predicted that Congress would not be able to win a single seat in the by-elections to the 18 Assembly constituencies, “as surveys reveal that people are in favour of giving an opportunity to YSR Congress party leader, Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy”.
Apart from surveys, a strong “anti-incumbency factor common for a party which is in power for ten years” may also work against Congress, Dr. Ravindra Reddy has contended.
But within a few minutes he rushed to Congress Legislature Party office and retracted his statement wondering “how the media can report about comments which I never made”. He said all he wanted to convey was that the party high command should take several factors including caste and other equations into consideration, while finalising the candidates for the forthcoming by-elections. “The leadership has to make serious efforts by weighing all factors to overcome these obstacles,” he added.
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Two weeks after he made no secret of his displeasure against Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy for taking away key departments from his portfolio, the Minister came to his office in the Secretariat and shared his views with media persons. His comments have come a few days after he faxed his resignation from the ministry to the party leadership with a request that the high command seek the resignation of all the Ministers so that it could pick and chose the capable ones.
Replying to queries, he said Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy might not be arrested in connection with the ‘quid pro quo' case and that at best, he might be questioned by CBI.
Dr. Ravindra Reddy dubbed the Congress' claims on winning the 2014 Assembly elections as “day dreaming''. The party was, in fact, set to meet the same fate as in Tamil Nadu if Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy continued as the Chief Minister. “There is discontent among Ministers. The Deputy Chief Minister and the APCC president are afraid of speaking with anyone as their telephones are tapped.”
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He opined that Congress was distancing itself from Balijas who formed a sizeable chunk among the voters in Rayalaseema. The winning prospects of the party would brighten if Mr. Chiranjeevi replaced Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy as Chief Minister.