Konda Surekha, who was elected as MLA from Warangal East on Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) ticket in 2014, and her husband, Konda Murali, MLC, joined the Congress party in New Delhi on Wednesday.
The couple met AICC president Rahul Gandhi along with TPCC president N. Uttam Kumar Reddy, leader of party in the Council Mohd Ali Shabbir and former TPCC president Ponnala Lakshmaiah, and later announced their entry into the party.
Former Adilabad MP Ramesh Rathod, who quit the TRS recently, also joined along with his wife.
Target KCR
Ms. Surekha’s name was not included in the list of 105 candidates announced by he TRS leader and caretaker Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao. Ever since, the Konda couple have been targeting Mr. Rao and his family members alleging that they were running the party like feudal lords. She was apparently unhappy after her attempts to secure TRS ticket for her daughter from Parkal and also for their candidate from Bhupalpally constituency failed.
Ms. Surekha, who was a minister in the Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy Cabinet, moved to YSR Congress Party in support of Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy after Rajasekhar Reddy died in a helicopter crash.
At the peak of the Telangana movement, she vehemently opposed Mr. Rao and even used abusive words against him when her attempts to bring Jagan Mohan Reddy for the Warangal tour were foiled by TRS activists resulting in violence at Mahabubabad railway station.
Sidelined in party
However, after Jagan Mohan Reddy decided to take a united Andhra Pradesh stand before the State bifurcation, she landed in the TRS surprising everyone. Her husband, Murali, was later elected as an MLC. However, after her arch rival in politics Errabelli Dayakar Rao defected to TRS after being elected on TDP ticket, she apparently was sidelined in the party.
Mr. Uttam Kumar Reddy said the couple joined unconditionally and the tickets issue would be decided by the party later.
Mr. Rathod said he would extensively tour the constituencies with substantial Scheduled Tribes population to expose KCR’s failed promise of enhancing 12% reservations to STs.
