Minister Jupally faces ire of Congress workers over Gadwal BRS MLA defection to party

Tension escalated in the town soon after Jupally Krishna Rao reached Gadwal. Holding Congress party flags and raising slogans, Sarita's supporters squatted in front of the convoy.

Jogulamba Gadwal: Internal bickerings in the Congress in Gadwal constituency peaked to such an extent that Congress workers and followers Sarita Tirupataiah, who lost her election in the last assembly elections as a Congress candidate, prevented the Tourism Minister Jupally Krishna Rao from attending an official programme.

The workers were demanding that the minister pay a visit to Sarita’s house first before going to the official programme along with the local MLA Bandla Krishnamohan Reddy.

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The rivalry between Bandla Krishnamohan Reddy and Sarita had been going on for a while, with Reddy, who won on a BRS ticket against Sarita later defected to the Congress much to the chagrin of Sarita and her followers.

On Saturday Reddy was accompanying the minister when Sarita’s followers obstructed the convoy and argued with Jupally Krishna Rao that he should visit Sarita’s house first and then proceed to inspect reservoirs and water bodies in the district.

Tension escalated in the town soon after the Minister reached Gadwal. Holding Congress party flags and raising slogans, Sarita’s supporters squatted in front of the convoy.

The minister and his associates tried in vain to convince Sarita’s followers to allow the minsiter to go with the assurance that he would stop at her house while returning. However, so incensed were the Congress workers that they raised “Jupally down down” slogans. The minister’s repeated assurances that he would call on her in his return journey fell on deaf ears.

As the situation was turning worse, the Minister’s followers convinced him to visit Saritha Tirupataiah’s residence first. Heeding to their requests, he went to Sarita’s residence first and then proceeded to attend his official programmes.

The stiff opposition by Congress leaders over the entry of BRS MLAs into the Congress has been continuing. Krishnamohan Reddy had defected to the Congress and then later expressed his willingness to join the BRS again, but within a day changed his mind again to stick with the Congress.