-Galla S Kiran Kumar,Bureau Chief Telagana (Andhra Pradesh)
Senior Congress leader Ponnala Lakshmaiah has resigned.
Hyderabad: Senior Congress leader and former minister Ponnala Lakshmaiah has resigned. He left the party alleging irregularities in the selection of candidates. They were angry that they were not even given a chance to discuss party issues. He expressed his concern that Congress is losing its reputation in the society of Telangana due to business politics taking place in the party. In the party, BCs are being treated unfairly. To this extent, he has sent his resignation letter to the party leadership.
“With the attitude of some leaders, the reputation of the party is sinking. Udaipur Declaration is not being implemented. I can’t be in a party facing insults. Even the seniors are not given appointment by the headship. They insulted me without making an appointment for months. It is being spread that there are many irregularities in the selection of candidates. The developments taking place in the party are giving strength to those allegations. It is unfortunate that a senior leader like me has to wait months for an appointment to discuss party issues. Even after 10 days since I came to Delhi, I did not give a single minute to meet AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal. It is a shame that they did not give time to Delhi to demand that seats be given preference to BCs.
In 2001, 44 Congress MLAs signed for Telangana.. I was the first to sign. I have worked for Telangana since the beginning with sincerity. As a minister in the state for 18 years, I managed many departments and worked for the development of the state. If such an insult happens to me, who has dedicatedly worked for the party for 40 years, it is scary to imagine the situation of an average BC leader in the party. Some have turned the party into a business entity. While saying that the Congress party will come to power in Telangana, on the other hand, the party has been put up for sale and turned into a commercial commodity. If the reins of the party are handed over to people who are not related to the Congress party, it will be like this,” said Ponnala. Ponnala thanked everyone who helped him in every way over the years.
