Politicians go party hopping

Hyderabad, Sept. 22: Former minister Tammineni Seetharam remained inaccessible for over a week, refusing even to entertain the Telugu Desam president, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu’s calls. The reason was obvious: Mr Seetharam had jumped the wagon to join Chiranjeevi’s Praja Rajyam.

Meanwhile, after flirting with the TRS and the BJP for some time, Ravula Ravindranath Reddy, a former BJP MLA from Mahbubnagar, chose to go with the Congress. Actors Rajasekhar and Jeevitha — who have a running feud with Chiranjeevi — too have finally joined the Congress.

Not just these high-profile names, politicians big and small are busy realigning their loyalties. Take the case of M. Shivakumar, a Zaheerabad resident who was recently appointed the spokesperson for the Telugu Yuvatha. However, within a week, he quit the TD to join the Praja Rajyam.

"It is a new party and we will have better prospects," reasoned Mr Shivakumar. Each day some politician or the other is quitting one party to join another, mostly to enhance their own prospects. In all this, the TD seems the worst hit with most desertions, as many senior leaders have moved over to Chiranjeevi’s party. Beginning with Bhuma Nagi Reddy, Sobha Nagi Reddy, Harirama Jogaiah, K. Vidyadhara Rao, the flow continued with Vanga Geetha, C. Ramachandraiah, Thota Trimurthulu, J. Nehru, Rehman and Yanamala Venkat Rao (brother of Yanamala Ramakrishnudu, the TD politburo member).

So far, the Praja Rajyam has attracted the largest number of leaders. The ruling Congress, however, has remained largely unaffected by floor crossing thanks to the Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy’s good image. The Congress is still on a strong wicket and the party leadership does not expect any desertions in the coming months. So far, only Harirama Jogaiah, an MP, has quit the Congress for the Praja Rajyam.

The APCC president, Mr D. Srinivas openly welcomed people to join the Congress. "We are looking for second-rung leaders. If they are committed to party programmes and policies, we will welcome them subject to approval of the party. The Congress is a winning horse and we will be in the saddle again," he claimed.

Sources in the Congress expect more leaders from other parties to join the Congress before the polls. "We are expecting a large number of leaders and activists, mostly from the TD, to join us in the coastal districts," a Congress MLC said. He said, opportunities and caste equations are the driving forces for the TD leaders to quit in the coastal district. The TRS, the BJP and T. Devender Goud’s outfit have not been too lucky in terms of attracting leaders.