The chief minister’s comments seemed aimed at cabinet hopefuls Rajagopal Reddy, Premsagar Rao, and Vivek Venkataswamy—all of whom notably skipped the Congress Legislative Party meeting held on 14 April
Published Apr 16, 2025 | 12:15 AM ⚊ Updated Apr 16, 2025 | 12:15 AM
Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy.
Synopsis: At a CLP meeting on 14 April, Telangana CM Revanth Reddy warned Congress MLAs against public dissent, likening criticism of leadership to political harakiri. His message targeted disgruntled legislators vying for cabinet posts—Rajagopal Reddy, Premsagar Rao, and Vivek Venkataswamy—who skipped the meet. Their recent public outbursts highlighted tensions over cabinet aspirations, seniority, and internal party dynamics
Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy delivered a stern warning to Congress MLAs during a Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting held at Novotel on 14 April, before leaving for Japan to attend the Osaka World Expo 2025.
Addressing concerns about party discipline, he urged legislators to exercise restraint in public forums, warning that criticising the party leadership openly would be akin to committing political harakiri.
The chief minister’s remarks appeared directed at certain legislators eyeing cabinet berths, including Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy (Munugode), K Premsagar Rao (Mancherial), and Gaddam Vivek Venkataswamy (Chennur). Notably, these three law-makers skipped the CLP meeting.
On 13 April, Rajagopal Reddy publicly slammed senior Congress leader K Jana Reddy from his native Nalgonda district, accusing him of blocking his cabinet prospects. On 14 April, Premsagar Rao expressed frustration, claiming that “newcomers,” to the party, implying Chennur MLA Gaddam Venkataswamy, were undermining his chances despite his loyalty to the party.
In response, Vivek Venkataswamy defended his family’s legacy, stating that public support for him and his son, Peddapalli MP Vamsi Krishna Gaddam, stemmed from their established reputation.
During the meeting, Reddy asked the MLAs to bear in mind that cabinet appointments are the prerogative of the party high command, and no one can influence the decision. He made it clear that neither he nor the central leadership would tolerate indiscipline, warning that MLAs who lose control and come down on the party publicly, do so at their own peril.
Reddy expressed dissatisfaction with the MLAs’ lack of proactive engagement in promoting the government’s welfare schemes, such as the distribution of superfine rice through PDS outlets and the Indiramma Houses. He chafed them for their failure to counter opposition attacks effectively.
Referring to the recent claim by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the Telangana government was destroying forests and wildlife with bulldozers, Reddy said that both the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were colluding to discredit Congress. He urged MLAs to expose the BRS-BJP covert alliance, saying that the BJP should explain why it isn’t providing superfine rice in states it governs.
Reddy instructed the MLAs to tour villages from 16 April to 2 June to promote government initiatives and counter opposition narratives. He announced that he would undertake similar visits from 1 May to 2 June on his return from Japan. The chief minister stressed the importance of leveraging the popularity of schemes like superfine rice distribution to strengthen Congress’s position and expose the opposition’s tactics.
(Edited by Ananya Rao)
