The Congress is fast losing its grip in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation.
With the
resignation of the party's floor leader in the GHMC Kaleru Venaktesh on Wednesday, the party has so far lost five corporators to YSRCP. According to sources, nine more corporators are in touch with the YSR Congress, and might switch sides any time.
Seethaphalmandi Congress corporator Adam Vijayakumar was the first to join the YSRCP. Later, Congress corporators S Harivardhan Reddy (from Habsiguda), G Suryanarayan Reddy (Suraram Colony) and affiliate member Singireddy Dhanpal Reddy (Cherlapalli) joined the YSRCP.
However, Kaleru Venkatesh's resignation came as a major jolt to the ruling party, as it will now have to nominate a new floor for the GHMC's General Body meeting to be held on December 15.
It may be mentioned here that to prevent the exodus of corporators to the YSRCP, Labour Minister and Greater Hyderabad Congress Committee president Danam Nagender took all the Congress corporators to Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on November 22, where they were assured of different sops. However, the offerings by the Chief Minister appear to have failed to prevent the corporators from leaving the party.
The TDP, too, is worried over the issue, as a few corporators are reportedly in touch with the YSRCP. Recently, TDP Corporator from R K Puram Deepa Surekha, along with her husband, joined the YSRCP.
Sources say that at least nine corporators, including former GHMC Mayor Banda Kartika Chandra Reddy and four TDP four corporators, are likely to join the YSRCP. Both the Congress and the TDP have been making efforts to prevent them from doing so. (INN)