The poll-bound Telangana was ignored in the 39-member Congress Working Committee (CWC) with none from the Telangana Congress finding a place in the committee announced on August 20 by the AICC president, Mallikarjun Kharge.
However, a surprise inclusion is former Minister, N. Raghuveera Reddy from Andhra Pradesh where the party has touched nadir ever since the United Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated to create Telangana.
Former Deputy Chief Minister, Damodar Raja Narasimha is made a member of the Permanent Invitees list while AICC secretary and former MLA, Ch. Vamshichand Reddy found a place in the Special Invitees list and not in the CWC, which takes critical decisions related to party’s policies for governance and the nation.
Several senior Congress leaders from the present Andhra Pradesh also found favour in the new list. Former Union Minister, Pallam Raju has been made a special invitee while former MP T. Subbirami Reddy and Koppula Raju were included in the permanent invitees list.
The decision to reconstitute the CWC was entrusted to the AICC president, Mr. Kharge at the 85th Plenary Session of the Indian National Congress (INC) held in Raipur from February 24 to February 26 this year.
Telangana leaders were expecting to be part of the CWC constituted ahead of the polls in Telangana along with four other States at the end of this year. They are now surprised to see the State being ignored just before the elections in the State where the Congress party is confident of winning back from the Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS).
There were several aspirants pinning hopes based on the caste arithmetic and a front runner was Mulugu MLA, D. Seethakka, a tribal leader. AICC secretary A. Sampath Kumar was also trying his luck based on the party’s plans to woo the Madiga community, which is numerically the biggest among Dalits and also one of the largest compared to other communities.
Former PCC chief Ponnala Lakshmaiah, Nalgonda MP, N. Uttam Kumar Reddy and Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Bhatti Vikramarka were other aspirants for the membership in the top policy making body of the Congress.
