To prevent poaching, Congress seeks to keep flock together

HYDERABAD: Congress is likely to take its MPTCs, ZPTCs, councillors and corporators from Nalgonda, Ranga Reddy and Warangal local authorities constituencies to a camp to avoid poaching by the ruling TRS. A senior Congress leader told TOI, "The ruling TRS has been luring Congress and TDP MLAs and has been sucessful in engineering defection of 11 Congress MLAs and one TDP legislator."
Many MPTCs and ZPTCs of the Congress and TDP have already joined TRS in the last three years. "We don't want to take chances with the bypolls to three MLC seats," the senior leader said.
In the elections in 2016, Congress had won the Nalgonda MLC local authorities constituency, and the ruling TRS emerged victorious in Ranga Reddy and Warangal constituencies.
However, political equations have changed a lot since the 2016 elections. While the TRS swept the December-2018 Assembly elections, the political turf also saw TRS MP from Chevella, Konda Vishweshwar Reddy, joining the Congress. This development is expected to bring to the opposition party support of many MPTCs and ZPTCs.
Likewise, TRS MLC Konda Murali from Warangal constituency had resigned from the TRS and joined Congress. However, Congress has fielded EC Venkat Ram Reddy this time from Warangal.
In Nalgonda, the Komatireddy brothers are going all out to retain their hold in the entire district and got the approval of AICC high command to field K Lakshmi Reddy, wife of Komatiredd Rajagopal Reddy, Congress MLA from Munugode. The Komatireddy brothers are bent on winning the MLC seat. Keeping this in view, the Congress leadership wants to keep the flock together at a safe place to prevent poaching.