NIZAMABAD: Former Assembly Speaker and Banswada MLA Pocharam Srinivas Reddy was conspicuous by his absence during Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s MLC election campaign in the erstwhile Nizamabad district on Monday.
Srinivas Reddy, who joined the Congress in 2024 after the Lok Sabha elections on the invitation of Revanth Reddy, was appointed as the state government’s advisor on agriculture with cabinet rank. However, in recent months, he has been notably absent from Congress party programmes.
Most recently, he skipped the MLC election campaign meeting addressed by district in-charge minister Jupally Krishna Rao. This has sparked speculation about his political future, especially with the BRS’ petitions seeking the disqualification of 10 BRS MLAs who defected to the Congress still pending before the Supreme Court and the Assembly Speaker.
Pocharam has instead been focusing on his constituency, extensively touring villages and attending even small events. He has been actively engaging with the public, addressing social, developmental, and spiritual programmes, but has avoided sharing the stage with Congress leaders.
Sources suggest that he is considering a return to the BRS, which could explain his recent distance from the Congress. Interestingly, E Ravindar Reddy, who contested the 2023 Assembly elections from Banswada on a Congress ticket, also skipped the CM’s programme, adding to the intrigue.
Srinivas Reddy, the 76-year-old senior politician, hailing from the erstwhile Nizamabad district, has had a long and varied political career. He began with the Congress, later joined the TDP in undivided Andhra Pradesh, and eventually moved to the BRS (formerly TRS).
After the recent Assembly elections, he returned to the Congress fold.
Pocharam has been elected seven times as an MLA from the Banswada Assembly constituency. He has held significant positions, including various ministerial portfolios in the TDP regime and later as minister and Assembly Speaker under the TRS government.