Former minister and senior Congress leader Marri Shasidhar Reddy announced his resignation from the party on Tuesday, November 22. Reddy sent his letter of resignation to party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress leader Sonia Gandhi. Addressing the media about the development, Shashidhar Reddy said he was breaking off his relationship with the Congress party with great pain.
“My twitter bio says I am always a Congressman. I had to do this as the condition of the Congress party in Telangana is deteriorating by the day. The Congress has completely failed to expose the failures of the TRS government in the state. Telangana state is my priority,” Shashidhar Reddy said.
He lashed out at Telangana Congress party in-charge leaders and the Pradesh Congress Committee president claiming that they were responsible for worsening the party's situation in the state and for showing disregard to fellow leaders. “The Congress has match-fixed with the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi party in the state and gradually lost the trust of the people. Sonia Gandhi is also unable to do anything,” he added.
Marri Shashidhar Reddy was expelled from the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) on November 19 for a period of six years, citing anti-party activities. The decision was taken after Reddy and Home Minister Amit Shah met in New Delhi on Friday.
"Keeping in view the tendency of the situation and anti-party activities of M Shashidhar Reddy, the DAC of the TPCC has taken a decision to expel him from the Congress for a period of six years," read the statement signed by G Chinna Reddy, Chairman of Disciplinary Action Committee of the Congress party.
Marri Shashidhar Reddy was the vice-chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority during the UPA regime. He is the son of the former Chief Minister of united Andhra Pradesh, Marri Chenna Reddy, a leader with several decades of association with the Congress. Shashidhar Reddy is expected to join the saffron party soon.
The resignation is the second high profile loss for the Congress party in Telangana, which saw the resignation of its MLA Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy in August this year. Reddy, who was the sitting MLA of Munugode jumped ship to BJP, triggering a bye-election in the constituency. Reddy lost the elections to TRS candidate Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy and the Congress candidate Palvai Sravanthi Reddy came a distant third.