Congress gets big shock ahead of Dubbaka byelections

The Dubbaka triangular contest is turning out to be interesting with all the parties in the fray taking the bypolls prestigious. TRS leader Cheruku Srinivas Reddy and son of former minister Cheruku Muthyam Reddy, defected from the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to join the Congress Party ahead of the elections.

Two Congress leaders from Dubbaka gave shock to the party by joining the ruling TRS. The two Congress leaders – Komatireddy Venkateswara Reddy and B Manohar Rao – joined the TRS in the presence of finance minister Harish Rao and MP Kotha Prabhakar.

The two leaders joined the party along with 2,000 party supporters which is likely to impact the prospects of the Congress Party ahead of the bypolls. The Congress is making all out efforts to wrest the Dubbaka seat from the TRS with the Telangana party president Uttam Kumar Reddy, MPs Revanth Reddy and Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, CLP leader Bhatti Vikramarka hitting the roads for an extensive campaign.

Welcoming the two party leaders, Harish Rao said the Congress Party has become bankrupt with the joining of Komatireddy Venkateswara Reddy and B Manohar Rao.

“TRS government introduced Kalyan Lakshmi Shadi Mubarak scheme to provide financial assistance for marriages of the poor. We have been disburing Rs 1,00,116. So far, the TRS government conducted more than 7 lakh marriages under Kalyan Lakshmi Shadi Mubarak scheme. I want to ask the Congress Party if such a scheme was introduced by the Congress governments in Punjab, Pondicherry and Maharasthra,” Harish Rao asked.

Further, Harish Rao slammed TPCC president Uttam Kumar Reddy for calling Solipeta Sujatha Reddy, wife of late four-time MLA Ramalinga Reddy, as an inefficient leader. Dubbaka Assembly constituency which fell vacant following the sudden demise of sitting MLA Solipeta Ramalinga Reddy. The TRS appears confident to retain the seat as it has fielded Sujatha on sympathy factor.

Harish Rao, who has been running an intensive campaign visiting villages in Dubbaka, exuded confidence that the TRS will retain the seat by a margin of over one lakh votes.

The BJP has fielded Raghunandan Rao. Minister of State for Home Kishan Reddy, BJP national vice-president D K Aruna and Telangana party president Bandi Sanjay Kumar are banking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s image which is unlikely to be a factor in the local elections. The bypoll notification for Dubbaka will be issued on October 9. The last date for filing nominations will be October 16. The last date for withdrawal of candidatures will be October 19. The entire election process will be completed before November 12.