Supreme Court Boosts Congress Morale, Upward Trend Ahead of Telangana Assembly Polls

Hyderabad: The Supreme Court order staying the conviction of senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday turned out to be yet another morale booster for the Telangana unit of the party in the run-up for the Assembly elections.

Congress leaders were elated over the constant upswing for the party from the day A. Revanth Reddy took over the reins of the state unit to the Bharatiya Janata Party receiving a drubbing in the Karnataka polls and the nosedive in its fortunes in Telangana following internal squabbles and the Congress’ successful campaign projecting a tacit understanding between the saffron and pink parties.

“While the BRS graph is stagnant, if not falling like that of the BJP, the Congress fortunes are constantly registering an upward trend,” party leaders involved in assessing the public mood told ‘Deccan Chronicle’. The trend will further intensify and cross the BRS in the final lap before the polls, they added

Party leaders said that Congress Legislature Party leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka’s walkathon had helped in taking the party’s agenda to the grassroots and its culmination into a massive public meeting in Khammam, attended by Rahul Gandhi, gave confidence to leaders over mobilising people.

If the Congress win in Karnataka had stemmed the much-feared defections from the Congress, the joining of former MP Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy and former minister Jupally Krishna Rao is expected to encourage others from the BRS to switch over in the days to come, they pointed out.

“Rahul Gandhi and the people of the country have won,” said AICC in-charge Manik Rao Thakre reacting to the SC order. Accusing the BJP of conspiring to keep Rahul Gandhi away from contesting the polls for next eight years, the senior Congress leader said the apex court’s order was a victory for democracy.

TPCC chief and MP A. Revanth Reddy said that justice has been done in Rahul Gandhi's case. The BJP had deliberately filed false cases against Rahul Gandhi to damage the Congress’ image, he said.

"As part of the BJP's plan, the government disqualified Rahul Gandhi as MP following court orders giving conviction in the criminal defamation cases. The AICC leader vacated the official residence following the court orders. We express our happiness that the apex court has granted stay orders," Revanth Reddy said.
Bhatti welcomed the SC direction and lamented that BJP would stoop to any level to cling to power at the cost of democracy.