The speculative news that former minister and presently Bhongir MP Komatireddy Venkat Reddy is likely to become the next president of Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee is said be creating ripples in the camp of PCC working president A Revanth Reddy.
Starting Wednesday, All India Congress Committee in-charge of Telangana affairs Manickam Tagore will be gathering opinions from the party leaders on who would be the better choice for the PCC chief post.
In fact, it is not the first time that the AICC had done gathering of opinions. After 2018 assembly elections, too, the party high command had done a similar exercise, when former Union minister Ghulam Nabi Azad had come to Hyderabad and collected opinions of all the seniors. But no action was taken then.
Now, the time has come to make drastic changes in the state leadership after the party’s miserable show in Dubbak by-elections and GHMC elections. The party has to find a new leader to fight the ensuing by-elections to Nagarjunasagar seat.
Tagore is expected to meet around 100 leaders, including those from the districts and frontal organisations apart from the seniors.
He will have one-on-one conversation with these leaders. He will then submit a report to AICC president Sonia Gandhi, who will take the final call.
However, there have been reports that majority of the PCC leaders, except a few, are in favour of Komatireddy, for the simple reason that Revanth Reddy being a new comer, should not be made the PCC chief as it might result in unrest among the seniors.
“Revanth Reddy may be aggressive and hard worker, but Komatireddy is no less aggressive in attacking KCR. He is acceptable to all, unlike Revanth,” a party leader said.
The question now is what would Revanth do in the event of being denied the PCC chief post? Will he withdraw silently and work under Komatireddy’s leadership or fight for his position in the party?
There is a talk that Revanth might call it quits to the Congress party and launch his own political outfit to fulfil his ambition of becoming the chief minister one day or the other.
Soon, he might launch a massive padayatra on the lines of YSRC president Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy and tour every nook and corner of Telangana in the next two years to establish his contacts with the people.
“He is also planning to launch his own media house and strengthen his social media network. That would fetch him much needed mileage among the people and help him realise his ambition in future,” sources said.