HYDERABAD: The TDP’s Telangana unit received a body blow Thursday, on the eve of its ‘bus yatra’in the State aimed at exposing the alleged failures of the TRS government, as three of its MLAs and an MLC decided to join the pink party.
Among the defectors were key legislators from the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, Talasani Srinivas Yadav and Teegala Krishna Reddy, and also Parkal MLA C Dharma Reddy and MLC Gangadhar Goud. Another TDP MLA Prakash Goud appears to be sitting on the fence, for now.
The four legislators called on Telangana Chief Minister and TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao at his residence in the morning and confirmed their new-found love for the pink party.
Soon after, Talasani and Teegala, long-time colleagues of TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, spewed venom on him. “Naidu wants his son Lokesh to lead the TDP in Telangana as if there is no other leader in Telangana to head the party,” Talasani alleged.
Accusing Naidu of conspiring to foil KCR’s development plans, he said, “Krishnapatnam Thermal Power Plant is ready for inauguration. But it appears Naidu does not want it to be commenced immediately as he would then have to give 54 per cent of the power generated to Telangana.” Following the high-profile defections, the TDP chief pressed the panic button and held a series of meetings with the party’s senior leaders and legislators in Telangana.
Later in the evening, addressing a press conference, Naidu refuted the allegation that he was deliberately withholding power supply to Telangana.