Surekha is understood to have been miffed over Ponguleti, who happens to be in charge of the Warangal district, awarding ₹71 crore worth of works for Medaram Jatara development without informing her.
Published Oct 14, 2025 | 10:53 AM ⚊ Updated Oct 14, 2025 | 10:53 AM
Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy and Konda Surekha.
Synopsis: Congress Ministers in Telangana are in loggerheads even before completing their first two-year term in office. A war of words broke out between four ministers. One involving Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy and Konda Surekha, and the other between G Vivek Venkataswamy and Adluri Laxman Kumar.
Congress leaders in Telangana are back to their old wily ways even before completing their first two-year term in office.
Just as the spat between Ministers Ponnam Prabhakar and Adluri Laxman Kumar ended with a temporary truce, a fresh war of words broke out between four other ministers, one of which is between Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy and Konda Surekha over tenders being called for development works in Mulugu for the Medaram Jatara next year.
Surekha, who hails from Warangal, is understood to have been miffed over Ponguleti, who happens to be in charge of the Warangal district, awarding ₹71 crore worth of works for Medaram Jatara development without informing her.
Even though there was speculation that she had complained to party President Mallikarjun Kharge, those close to her denied the same. Surekha, however, did lodge an oral complaint with Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) President Mahesh Kumar Goud.
While Ponguleti said he benefited nothing from the contracts, Surekha contends that she should have been kept in the loop as protocol demands, since she is not only from the same district but also holds the Endowments Department portfolio under which Medaram Jatara works.
She claimed that as the festival is organised by the Endowments Department, allotting works to contractors without her knowledge is wrong. Apparently, no note file relating to the contract was sent to her for consent, nor was she briefed even orally about the same.
Even as this controversy has been brewing, Labour Minister G Vivek Venkataswamy hit out at his fellow minister Adluri Laxman Kumar, who holds the portfolio of Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) Welfare. Adluri Laxman took exception to his earlier comments on him. While both leaders are SC leaders, Vivek is from the Mala community, while Adluri Laxman is a Madiga.
Laxman, cut to the quick, reminded that he had played an active role in ensuring the victory of Vivek’s son Vamsi Krishna in the Lok Sabha election from Peddapalli constituency, and said that insults were being heaped on him because he belonged to the Madiga community, a less privileged group among the SCs.
Interestingly, while Mahesh Kumar Goud played the peacemaker in the row between Ponnam and Laxman earlier, so far there has been no intervention from the party in either tussle — Ponguleti-Surekha and Adluri-Vivek.
The seeds for the present Adluri-Vivek row were sown a few days ago when Ponnam compared Adluri with a buffalo. Ponnam reportedly made the comment when Adluri was being delayed for a programme in the Jubilee Hills Assembly constituency recently.
The event, ironically, was hosted by the Minority Welfare Department — part of Laxman’s own portfolio. As the minister was running late, Ponnam reportedly remarked that the programme should start without waiting for him.
In the course of his comments, Ponnam is said to have muttered the word “buffalo”, a remark that deeply offended Laxman. The latter later issued a statement, expressing his anguish over what he called Ponnam’s “condescending and supercilious” attitude.
In the same breath, Laxman also accused another minister, Vivek, who was present, of failing to intervene — and even appearing pleased that Ponnam had made the jibe.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy continues to maintain a stoic silence, choosing not to intervene even as the infighting among ministers tarnishes the government’s image.
Congress observers fear that such public spats, especially at a time when the government is already facing public discontent over unfulfilled promises, could further erode its support base and hurt the party’s prospects in the upcoming local body elections.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)