Nizamabad. Nizamabad: Banaswada MLA from BRS Party and former Assembly Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy joining the ruling Congress has stirred up a controversy in the undivided Nizamabad district. Both BRS and Congress leaders on Friday staged separate protests against Pocharam’s change of colour. BRS workers staged a protest at Pocharam’s residence in Hyderabad, while Congress leaders staged a protest against the move in Banaswada Assembly constituency. Pocharam Srinivas Reddy
Pocharam Srinivas Reddy on Friday joined the Congress in the presence of Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy. This will change the political equations in Nizamabad and Kamareddy districts. Pocharam started his political career with the Congress party.
He joined the Telugu Desam after it was founded in the early 1980s. He was a cabinet minister in the Telugu Desam government during united Andhra Pradesh. Pocharam joined TRS party in 2010 while being Banswada MLA. Later he won the seat as BRS MLA in the by-election. After the formation of Telangana state, he served first as Agriculture Minister and later as Assembly Speaker. He maintained close relations with former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and his family members.
Similar to Gajwel, Siddipet and Sircilla assembly constituencies, Pocharam initiated development works and welfare schemes in Banswada assembly constituency.
Out of the nine MLA seats in undivided Nizamabad district, BRS MLAs Pocharam Srinivas Reddy and Vemula Prashanth Reddy won from Banswada and Balkonda assembly constituencies. A section of politicians expected that Balkonda MLA Prashanth Reddy would join Congress party and take up some important post. But, surprisingly, Pocharam Srinivas Reddy joined Congress party with the promise of strengthening the party’s base in Banswada.
Due to lack of leadership in Banswada, the Congress party fielded former Yellareddy MLA Enugu Ravinder Reddy from there. After the defeat in Banswada, Ravinder Reddy targeted Pocharam Srinivas Reddy and intensified the agitation programme. To defeat him, Pocharam joined the Congress. Srinivas Reddy’s sons Pocharam Bhaskar Reddy and Pocharam Surender Reddy are also active in politics and their political future has become stable with their father joining the Congress party. Pocharam Srinivas Reddy’s followers were hoping that he could be inducted into the state cabinet under the quota of the undivided Nizamabad district. Currently, there is no representation from the district in the state cabinet.
