Malkajgiri Lok Sabha seat prestigious for Congress: Revanth Reddy

Hyderabad, March (IANS) Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, who was elected to the Lok Sabha from Malkajgiri constituency in 2019, on Thursday asked the party leaders to ensure that the party retains the seat.

He held a meeting with the party leaders from the Malkajgiri parliamentary constituency and asked them to work hard to ensure that the Congress flag flies high in the May 13 election.

The party has announced BRS legislator Patnam Mahender Reddy's wife and Vikarabad ZP Chairperson Sunitha, who joined the Congress last month, will contest from Malkajgiri constituency.

Terming the Malkajgiri election prestigious, he said that this is the poll battle of the Chief Minister and not just the party candidate.

Revanth Reddy, who is also the state Congress chief, reviewed the party’s poll preparations in the constituency and said Malkajgiri should set a campaign model for the party for the entire state. He said that if he is Chief Minister today it is because of the hard work of the party cadres in the constituency.

He recalled that though some leaders had sold themselves, the Congress workers stood by him and sent him to Delhi. Revanth Reddy said his victory in Malkajgiri ultimately catapulted him to the position of Chief Minister.

Targeting Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) President and former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, he remarked that KCR’s downfall started from Malkajgiri in 2019.

He, however, noted that while Congress swept the recent Assembly elections across the state, the results in Assembly segments under Malkajgiri Lok Sabha constituency were not to the party’s expectations.

"If we had won four out of seven Assembly seats, we could have undertaken development works. That’s why Congress should win the Malkajgiri Lok Sabha seat so that development works can be taken up," he said.

The Congress had drawn a blank in Assembly segments under the parliamentary constituency.

Revanth Reddy also called upon the party leaders and cadres to ensure the party's victory in the Secunderabad Cantonment Assembly by-election, scheduled to be held along with Lok Sabha polls.

The vacancy arose after Lasya Nanditha, who was elected on the BRS ticket in the November 30 election, died in a road accident last month. Sri Ganesh, who had contested on the BJP ticket and finished the runner-up in Secunderabad Cantonment, also attended Thursday’s meeting after joining Congress.

Former MLA Mynampally Hanmanth Rao, former minister Patnam Mahender Reddy and senior Congress leader Madhu Goud Yaskhi were among those who attended the meeting.

The Chief Minister said that during 100 days the Congress government focussed on governance. He mentioned that the government implemented guarantees like free bus travel for women, increasing Arogyasri health insurance coverage to Rs.10 lakh, cooking gas cylinders for Rs 500 and 200 units of free power every month.

Revanth Reddy claimed that his government provided 30,000 jobs in three months. He said by maintaining cordial relations with the Centre, the Congress government laid the foundation stone for the development of the skyway in Malkajgiri.