Telangana: Senior Congress leader Jeevan Reddy resigns from party

Senior Congress leader T Jeevan Reddy resigned from the party citing mental agony and alleged injustice to party workers in Jagtial. He criticised the leadership for encouraging turncoat MLA Sanjay Kumar and ignoring long-time Congress leaders.

JAGTIAL: Senior Congress leader T Jeevan Reddy, who has been unhappy with the party leadership’s attitude in encouraging the turncoat MLA Dr M Sanjay Kumar, resigned from the party on Wednesday. Despite the party leaderships’ efforts to convince him to stay in the party, Jeevan Reddy tendered his resignation to both party’s primary membership as well as AICC membership.

In a letter written to AICC president Mallikarjuna Kharge, Jeevan Reddy explained the reasons for his decision to quit the party. Unable to tolerate mental agony and injustice being done to party workers in Jagtial constituency, he has decided to resign from the party.

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On October 24, 2024, he wrote a letter to AICC leadership, including Mallikarjuna Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and TPCC president Mahesh Kumar Goud about the developments in Jagtial assembly constituency and sought a direction from leadership. However, there was no response from the party leadership even after one year.

Though he fought against the previous BRS government in assembly as well as in council, he could not get recognition or priority in the party. Even nominated posts were also allocated to the candidates recommended by turncoat MLA Sanjay Kumar, he narrated in his letter.

It was a clear violation of constitutional norms to invite Sanjay Kumar to the party’s municipal election preparatory meeting held in Gandhi Bhavan while the issue of turncoat MLAs was being inquired by the assembly speaker. It was also against Rahul Gandhi’s slogan of Jai Bhim, Jai Bapu, Jai Samvidhan. Upset over it, he had to walk out of the meeting.

Referring to Jagtial municipal elections, he informed that out of 50 councilors, 30 seats were allocated to the followers of Sanjay Kumar by ignoring the original Congress leaders. He had to support the independents, who had worked for the growth of the Congress party for decades together. Unfortunately, the municipal chairperson post was also given to the candidate recommended by the Jagtial MLA.

So, party workers were unhappy with the development taking place in the constituency during the last 20 months. Unable to overcome the mental agony being undergone by him during the last 20 months, he has decided to quit the congress though it was painful to leave the party with which he has been associated for 40 years.

It remains to be seen whether Jeevan Reddy will join another party.