‘KCR betrayed me’: Disgruntled TRS leader Ramesh Rathod joins Congress

After being denied a ticket of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) from Adilabad, Ramesh Rathod has now joined the Congress party and has also been assured of a party ticket. The Congress party welcomed him into their fold on Friday.

Ramesh, who was earlier with the Telugu Desam Party, joined the TRS in May last year and had hoped that the TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao would give him a ticket to contest from Khanapur—an ST constituency. However, Rathod got a jolt on September 6 after his name didn’t feature in the party nominee list announced by KCR, shortly after dissolving the cabinet.

Following this, Ramesh told his supporters that he would contest as an independent. However, he now has got a ticket from the Congress for the ticket from Khanapur.

“When I joined the TRS, KCR had assured me of a ticket from Khanapur. However, he betrayed me by denying a seat and gave it to sitting MLA Rekha Naik. It was definitely a betrayal. I was deeply upset with it,” he told TNM.

Rathod is a former Lok Sabha MP from Adilabad and a former polit bureau member of TDP.  

He said that he doesn’t want an MLC or MP ticket, but an MLA ticket. Before becoming an MP in 2009, Rathod had contested was an MLA, and had represented TDP until 2004.

“I have strong support from the people. They have known me for many years. My cadres were initially dejected with KCR’s announcement, but soon I got calls from several quarters. But when approached by the Congress, I immediately joined the party,” Ramesh Rathod added.

Rathod said that when he joined the TRS, he and his son, Ritesh, were offered a ticket from Adilabad.

Apart from Rathod, few others who were denied a seat include Konda Surekha, Bodiga Shoba, Babu Mohan and Nallala Odelu.

KCR announced 115 candidates on September 6, but he did not reveal the party nominees for the Warangal constituency — which sitting MLA Konda Surekha opposed. Surekha threatened to quit the party and contest as an Independent. However, she is yet to quit the party and take a decision.

Another sitting MLA from Chennur, Nallala Odelu, strongly opposed his nomination being denied and the ticket being offered to Balka Suman. However, after his meeting with TRS president, he now has decided to remain with the party and work for its victory in the upcoming elections.