Congress in a quagmire

City Congress president Danam Nagender and former minister Marri Sashidhar Reddy have been at loggerheads and their differences appears to trouble the party over selection of the candidates in the coming days.

Thus far, the 24-member party coordination panel recently nominated by AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh has not been able to script any strategy for the GHMC polls.

While Mr Nagender asserts that his writ should go in selection of candidates as well as party campaign for the GHMC polls, the faction led by Mr Sashidhar Reddy insists that every issue concerning the elections should be addressed by the PCC leadership rather than being left to individuals.

Mr Sashidhar Reddy also want selection of party candidates be left to local leaders instead of the responsibility being entrust to leaders from other constituencies.

It is reliably learnt that Mr Nagender has already ‘selected’ some candidates for various divisions in the city, and this is being opposed by the other faction.

Some 50 out of 150 GHMC divisions fall under Ranga Reddy district and leaders from there want the selection of candidates be left to them and not to the City Congress president.

Though Mr Nagender denied numerous reports that he plans to quit the Congress and join the TRS, several leaders from the city believe he will ditch the party once the poll notification is issued.

“Some disgruntled leaders of the party want to malign my image with this propaganda. They want to create a situation wherein the City Congress president has no role to play in the GHMC polls. They should know that it was always the city unit of the party had has decided everything,” Mr Nagender told DC.