HYDERABAD: Factional feuds within the Warangal unit of the ruling Congress are threatening to snowball into a full-blown crisis, just ahead of the crucial panchayat elections scheduled for Aug. At the centre of the unrest is a bitter standoff between endowments minister Konda Surekha and her husband and senior leader Konda Murali on one side, and a group of party MLAs, MLCs, and senior district leaders on the other. The internal strife has reached the Telangana Congress’ disciplinary action committee, which is now working to broker peace before the party’s poll preparations are derailed in the politically sensitive district.
While the committee has already heard both the sides-albeit in separate sittings-it is now likely to summon the warring factions for a face-to-face meeting in a final attempt to resolve the dispute amicably.Bid to defuse crisisIf the committee fails to bring about a truce, it will escalate the matter to the TPCC leadership, which may then seek intervention from the AICC, given that a sitting minister and multiple elected representatives are involved.Congress MLAs Naini Rajender Reddy, KR Nagaraju, Revuri Prakash Reddy, and Gandra Satyanarayana Rao, along with MLC Basavaraju Saraiah, Warangal town Congress committee president Errabelli Swarna, and KUDA chairman Enagala Venkatram Reddy, submitted formal complaints to the party, alleging ‘unilateralism and high-handed behaviour’ by the Konda couple. They also accused the duo of sidelining party MLAs, MPs, and MLCs, and making decisions without consultation-damaging the image and internal cohesion of the party in the district.In a show of strength, Murali appeared before the disciplinary committee with a large group of supporters and presented his version of events to vice-chairman A Shyam Mohan. He was later served a show-cause notice and asked to submit a written explanation.Despite the committee’s intervention, tensions have only escalated. Murali made a statement claiming he had spent 70 crore in the last elections, funding it by selling 16 acres from a total of 500 acres he owns. He added that his political journey had always been a battle against upper caste dominance and reaffirmed his commitment to the political empowerment of BCs. Speaking to TOI, Shyam Mohan said, “All of them are our own party leaders. Some differences have cropped up, and we want to strike a truce by eliminating misunderstandings. This matter involves MLAs, MLCs, and a senior minister, and we aim to resolve it after a thorough inquiry.”Sources said that the TPCC leadership is equally keen to defuse the crisis before the panchayat poll notification is issued. With Congress eyeing strong grassroots consolidation, any visible internal discord could weaken its position on the ground-especially in districts like Warangal, where the stakes are high, party insiders said.
