Support Telangana: Ponnam To Cong

Following the humbling defeat of the Congress in the Kadapa by-elections, the party was forced to examine itself in an attempt to spot its faults.

Transport Minister Botsa Satyanarayana suggested that the lack of awareness in the public regarding the implementation of various welfare schemes could have been one of the causes of their poor performance. He explained that the government had failed to gain the people's trust that the government would live up to its promises.

Responding to Jagan's challenge to the Congress, wherein the former dared the latter to compete in a state-wide election with the faces of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi gracing their banners, while Jagan himself would compete with only his father YSR's figure in the backdrop, Botsa questioned why the Congress was not allowed to use YSR's photo.

"YSR is our leader and we had worked by his side during his lifetime," said Botsa. He asserted that in a democratic regime, ministerial profiles were not hereditary.

On a different front, Telangana Congress Leader Ponnam Prabhakar advised his party to adopt a pro-Telangana stand so as to garner strength in at least one region of the state. Since the Congress does not have much support in the Seemandhra regions, the leader explained, it would be wise for the Congress party to strengthen itself in Telangana.

Whether or not Jagan will make an effort to topple the Kiran Kumar Reddy government currently seems a moot question, for internal conflicts are deep-rooted at present. Soon after the completion of campaigning in Kadapa, some Congress leaders had criticised Kiran Kumar Reddy for not plotting an effective plan of action even though the resignation of Jagan and Vijayamma clarified that by-elections were inevitable.

With the resounding defeat of the Congress, speculations are rife that a number of Congress MLAs will jump ship in the coming week.