HYDERABAD: Winter holidays, Christmas, New Year... December is the time when most families bond and enjoy together. That’s, however, not the case for the political families of Telangana. With elections around the corner and each member of the family focussing on their political prospects, dinner table conversations are rather getting spicier.
Take the case of Manne Krishank. Till recently, he was the TPCC spokesperson. Now, he has resigned from the post to contest as an MLA from the Cantonment Assembly segment. Unfortunately, his father-in-law, senior Congress party leader and former union minister Sarve Satyanarayana, is also eyeing the same seat. Tres awkward!
Again, former Congress minister Marri Shashidhar Reddy and his son, Marri Aditya Reddy have both set their eyes on Sanathnagar assembly seat. Aditya had recently left Congress and joined Telangana Jana Samithi expecting a ticket to contest from the Sanathnagar assembly constituency. However, Congress and TJS joining hands ruined the father-son duo’s plans!
Though Congress has a one-family-one-ticket policy in place, many political families are trying to find ways to circumvent it. Leaders are making ‘Delhi Darshans’ to ensure seats for their parivaar. Voices from the ground, a.k.a. party cadre, say this will not do good to the party. Such practices by political families tend to chase away cadre and even split votes, they say.
Sources suggest that former union minister Sarve Satyanarayana, an SC candidate, is nursing chief ministerial aspirations if Congress led alliance comes to power. The Secunderabad Cantonment assembly constituency is reserved for an SC candidate. Sources say Sarve Sathyanarayana conducted a meeting with the elected members of SCB and requested the board members for their support.