In apparent signs of a rift within the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in Andhra Pradesh, two senior leaders got involved in a public spat on Twitter, calling each other several names and questioning their loyalty to the party and its chief, Chandrababu Naidu.
It all began after reports suggested that Vijayawada TDP city president and MLC Buddha Venkanna met with YSRCP MP V Vijayasai Reddy in Hyderabad recently.
Taking to Twitter, Vijayawada MP Kesineni Srinivas, more commonly known as Nani, hinted that Venkanna wanted to join the YSRCP, tweeting, "Till yesterday, it was Naidu’s feet, but from tomorrow it will be Vijayasai Reddy’s feet."
Hitting back, the MLC tweeted, "Chandrababu Naidu requires soldiers who fight until their last breath but not opportunists,” referring to Nani.
"It is unfortunate that a person who can't get four votes on his own got four posts. A person who can't utter four words properly is tweeting now,” Nani said in his response.
As it continued, the duo also began digging up history.
Buddha Venkanna alleged that Nani had 'backstabbed' actor-politician Chiranjeevi who had given him a Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) ticket.
Nani then indirectly accused Venkanna of being a 'sex racketeer', 'broker' and lobbyist.
"Whatever you say are lies. Whatever I'm telling is the truth. Isn't it you, who took finance on buses and cheated many people by creating fake receipts? Isn't it it you, who tweets, despite cheating financiers of several crore rupees?" Venkanna tweeted.
In 2017, all 170 luxury buses of the 88-year-old Kesineni Travels, one of south India's largest private travel agencies, came to a halt and its offices in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu were closed down, after a decision taken by Nani. The MP shut the company to protest what he called illegal operations of the travel companies registered in other states, but his critics accuse him of financial fraud and say this is the reason he closed down his companies.
నిన్నటి దాకా చంద్రబాబు కాళ్ళు
— Kesineni Nani (@kesineni_nani) July 14, 2019
రేపటి నుండి విజయసాయిరెడ్డి కాళ్ళు
కాళ్ళు కాళ్లే
వ్యక్తులు మాత్రమే తేడా!!!
రాజకీయ జన్మలు, రాజకీయ పునర్జన్మలు, రాజకీయ భవిష్యత్తులు
— Kesineni Nani (@kesineni_nani) July 14, 2019
గుళ్ళో కొబ్బరిచిప్ప దొంగలకి, సైకిల్ బెల్లుల దొంగలకి,కాల్ మనీ గాళ్ళకి, సెక్స్ రాకెట్ గాళ్ళకి, బ్రోకర్లకి, పైరవిదారులకి అవసరం.
నాకు అవసరం లేదు...
దళిత నాయకుడు మాజీ స్పీకర్ బాలయోగి ఆస్తులన్నీ కాజేసిన దొంగ ఎవరో దేశం మొత్తానికి తెలుసు
— venkanna_budda (@BuddaVenkanna) July 14, 2019
ఒకే నంబర్ పై దొంగ పర్మిట్లతో బస్సులు నడిపిన దొంగవి నువ్వే కదా
నేను చెప్పాల్సిన నిజాలు చాలా ఉన్నాయి వినే ధైర్యం నీకుందా?
Taking to Twitter on Monday, Nani tweeted, "Chandra Babu Garu if you don't want people like me in the party you can let me know I will resign as Member of Parliament and also to the Party membership. If you want people like me to continue please control your pet dog (sic)."
Nani was among the three MPs who had won on a TDP ticket in the recently held Lok Sabha elections in the state.