Ponnam holds party meeting at Secretariat, sparks controversy

BC Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar sparked controversy by holding a Congress strategy meeting for upcoming municipal elections at the Secretariat. Party leaders defended the move, saying only elected representatives attended and no party workers were involved

Hyderabad: Courting controversy, BC Welfare Minister Ponnam Prabhakar on Thursday held a meeting with a few party MLAs, an MP and other party leaders in the Secretariat to discuss plans for the upcoming municipal elections in Mahabubabad Parliamentary constituency.

The Minister is the Congress in-charge for Mahabubabad Parliamentary constituency. Accordingly, he held a meeting with party MLA Murali Naik, Government Advisor Vem Narender Reddy, Mahabubabad MP Balram Naik, Mayor Gadwal Vijayalaxmi and others in the Secretariat.

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During the meeting, the Minister discussed strategies to ensure the Congress party’s victory in the seven municipalities falling under the parliamentary constituency.

However, party leaders defended the meeting, stating that it did not involve party workers and that all those present were elected public representatives and a Government Advisor.

This is not an isolated instance. In the past too, a few Ministers conducted party meetings in the Secretariat. Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao and Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy had earlier held party meetings in their chambers.