Telangana: Amid Congress polls, cry goes up for Uttam Kumar Reddy's head

Hyderabad: There is a sudden spurt of activity in the State Congress with some leaders camping in Delhi to lobby with AICC leaders to replace Mr N. Uttam Kumar Reddy as PCC president.

This section accuses Mr Reddy of not being able to effectively counter TRS president and TS Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao. The TPCC chief has been unable to draw up any plan for the big challenge of bringing the party back to power in 2019, this section alleges.

According to close associates of the PCC president, this activity has been triggered at the instance of Nalgonda Congress leaders Komatireddy Venkat Reddy and his brother Rajagopal Reddy to malign Mr Uttam Kumar Reddy to weaken the party before the polls.

A few PCC leaders say that this was caused in some measure by newly appointed Telangana party affairs incharge R.C. Kuntia who during his recent three-day tour praised Mr Uttam Kumar Reddy and declared him the party’s “Captain” for the 2019 elections.

A few leaders called AICC organisational election incharge Mul-lapalli Ramachandran and inquired whether Mr Kuntia could make such a statement when the party polls were underway.

Mr Ramachandran reportedly told them such statements cannot be made as the election schedule has been announced.

But then, dissidence against the PCC president while in the Opposition and the Chief Minister while in power is nothing new for the Congress.

Mr Kuntia, Mr Uttam Kumar Reddy and AICC secretary Satish met party vice-president Rahul Gandhi in Delhi on Tuesday and discussed party affairs. It is not known whether the AICC is serious in effecting a change of guard during the party polls which mandates elections to all positions, or will allow the dispensation to stay.

There are over a dozen leaders, including the Komatireddy brothers, who are aspiring for the post.