Effecting a generational change, Congress on Saturday elevated Lok Sabha member A Revanth Reddy as the President of its Telangana unit.
Fifty-one-year-old Revanth, who was the working president of the state unit, succeeds N Uttam Kumar Reddy, who had quit as the Telangana Congress chief after the party’s dismal performance in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation elections last year.
Revanth is a Lok Sabha member from Malkajgiri constituency.
The Telangana Congress will have five working presidents – Mohammad Azharuddin, J Geetha Reddy, M Anjan Kumar Yadav, T Jagga Reddy and B Mahesh Kumar Goud.
Former Lok Sabha member and AICC Secretary Madhu Yashki Goud has been named as the Chairman of the Campaign Committee for the assembly elections that will be held in December 2023.
Former Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister C Damodar Rajnarasimha has been named as the chairman of the election management committee.
Both Revanth Reddy and Madhu Yashki are considered close to Rahul Gandhi, ties that would hold them in good stead as they attempt to rebuild the party in the state that was created in the final days of the UPA government.
Congress was hoping to perform well in Telangana after carving out the state from Andhra Pradesh, but lost out to Telangana Rasthra Samithi helmed by K Chandrasekhara Rao, who won two consecutive assembly elections. Congress has been pushed to the margins in state politics as BJP is trying to make inroads in the southern state.
In Revanth Reddy’s appointment, Congress President Sonia Gandhi has ignored the argument of veteran leaders including Hanumantha Rao who had expressed his opposition to the young leader citing the Enforcement Directorate chargesheet against him in the ‘cash for vote’ scam.
The issue dates back to 2015 when Revanth was caught while allegedly offering a bribe to an MLA to swing the vote in favour of Vem Narender Reddy in the Telangana Legislative Council elections.
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