35 BRS leaders defect to Congress ahead of Telangana Assembly elections

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi received a massive blow as 35 BRS leaders announced their intention to join the Indian National Congress on June 26.

Among the defecting leaders were former member of Parliament Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy, and former Telangana MLAs Jupally Krishna Rao, Panyam Venkateswarlu, Koram Kanakaiah and Kota Rambabu. Rakesh Reddy, son of BRS MLC Narsa Reddy, also joined Congress.

The leaders met Congress leaders at the All India Congress Committee office on Monday. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, general secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal and Telangana Congress chief A. Revanth Reddy.

The leaders jumped ship after the BRS sidestepped the multi-party Opposition meet in Patna on 23 June, with party supremo K. Chandrasekhar Rao saying that the Opposition parties were “obsessed with dislodging someone from power”.

The BRS leaders will formally join the Congress at a public rally in Khammam, Telangana — the constituency Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy contested from during the last Lok Sabha election. The rally is expected to be held in the first week of July. AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi is likely to be present for it.

The Telangana Assembly elections are to be held in December this year.