Former Union minister and Telugu Desam Party senior leader Ummareddy Venkateswarlu on Tuesday met YSR Congress president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy at the Chanchalguda prison here, in a prelude to joining that party.
Venkateswarlu, a Kapu leader from coastal Andhra, has been keeping away from the TDP activities for quite some time now, sore over party president N Chandrababu Naidu sidelining him. He was an important leader in the party for a very long time, in fact, the party’s ideologue.
After joining the YSR Congress in the presence of party honorary president YS Vijayamma at her Lotus Pond residence, he said he took the decision unable to digest the fact that the TDP was working hand in glove with the Congress. There was a departure from NTR’s ideals, he said.
He expressed the hope that the all the welfare schemes launched by the late YSR would be implemented full steam by YS Jagan Mohan Reddy when he comes to power.
Chandrababu Naidu had lost interest in him after reports that he was showing interest in the erstwhile Praja Rajyam Party ahead of 2009 general elections. He reportedly sought Rajya Sabha membership from Chiranjeevi and when the latter did not commit himself, he stayed on with the TDP.
Though Venkateswarlu, who is in his early eighties now, had not renewed his party membership for the last eight months, Naidu did not call him which had hurt Venkateswarlu much.
Venkateswarlu had said in the past that he was very much hurt over the party not giving due importance to the Kapu community. Though the Congress tried to woo him, Venkateswarlu preferred the YSR Congress.
His eldest son, Ummareddy Venkataramana, who has business interests in Hyderabad, has already joined the YSR Congress.
In another development, Greater Hyderabad Congress leader from Kukatpalli Vaddepalli Narasing Rao also met Jagan Mohan Reddy in the prison. He contested unsuccessfully from Kukatpally in the 2009 Assembly elections on a Congress ticket.