OU's Telangana agitation heroes pin hopes on Congress for poll ticket

Adilabad: Many student leaders of Osmania University at the forefront of Telangana statehood agitation, who later joined the Congress, are hopeful of getting party tickets to contest the upcoming assembly elections.

They are the first generation of the marginalised sections with rural backgrounds and well-connected with the masses. They have actively participated in social movements and a majority of them carry with them high educational qualifications.

Most of these leaders belong to SC, ST, and BC communities and are aspiring for tickets to contest the upcoming polls.

Leaders of BC communities say that the Congress high command might give at least two seats to BCs in each Parliament constituency as per the Raipur declaration.

Some of these university student leaders point out that the BRS led by chief minister Chandrasekhar Rao gave several posts to university student leaders. These posts included those of corporation chairman and members in various commissions. Some student leaders were elected as MLAs and MPs in the last two elections.

Many of these leaders had completed their Ph.D, but there was no recruitment to the teaching faculty in the state universities in the past 10 years after the formation of the Telangana state.

Some 18 student leaders applied for Congress tickets from erstwhile Adilabad, Khammam and Warangal districts, as also Hyderabad, Rangareddy etc, and some other places in the state.

These leaders say that they are confident the Congress party would accommodate a few of them in the coming elections. They expressed faith in the TPCC candidates screening committee and the central election committee of the Congress.

The former university student leaders now seeking tickets regret that there was possibility of injustice being done to the BCs vis-à-vis grant of party tickets to senior leaders and that the chances were also that more than one ticket could be given to some families in the good books of the leadership.

The student leaders now in the Congress say the money should not be the only criterion when it comes to giving tickets. Parties like the Congress must ensure ‘social justice’ instead of talking too much about ‘winning chances’ of nominees for the polls.

The leaders say they were active in the statehood agitation under different banners for 15-20 years and their productive life and precious time were spent in the Telangana agitation.

“There are many instances wherein leaders who invested huge money have lost the elections. The best example is Munugode. The Congress high command must take the leader’s commitment to the party, their hard work and their image among the public into consideration in the selection of candidates, these leaders pleaded.

Durgam Bhaskar has applied for a party ticket from Chennur of Mancherial district. He was in the forefront of OU students JAC and now working as TPCC general secretary.

Bhaskar told Deccan Chronicle that Rahul Gandhi had promised the (former) OU student leaders who are interested in electoral politics that they would be accommodated in the 2018 elections. But no ticket was given to them in 2018.

Many OU student leaders had tried for party tickets in 2014 and 2018 but in vain.

Koturi Manavatha Roy, another ex-OU leader and now TPCC general secretary who applied for party ticket from the Sathupalli in Khammam is confident of getting the party ticket this time though he had missed twice in the past.

He said still many OU student leaders who fought for the Telangana state but are against the BRS are making rounds of the courts in attending peshis in cases filed against them.

‘It is high time for the Congress party to recognize the services of the students and youth, who are working hard to strengthen the party and especially those who were at the forefront in the Telangana agitation, said Rangu Bala Laxmi a strong woman student leader from OU during the Telangana agitation. She too is now working as TPCC general secretary.

Bala Laxmi applied for the party ticket from Jangaon under BC and women's quota. Pidamarthi Ravi of the BRS who joined the Congress along with Ponguleti Srinivas applied for the ticket from both Secunderabad Cantonment and Thungathurthy constituencies.

Pidamarthi Ravi was a popular leader of OU student JAC and in the forefront of the Telangana agitation. He was a native of erstwhile Khammam and contested the previous polls from Sathupalli.

TPCC general secretary Kailash Netha, who was an OU student leader of the Telangana agitation applied for a party ticket from Munugode. His name is under consideration by the party leadership, it is rumoured.

Dr Kethoori Venkatesh, AICC OBC national convener, is aspiring for the party ticket from Kollapur. He was a Yatri who walked along with Rahul Gandhi from Kanyakumari to Kashmir as part of the Bharat Jodo Yatra.

Pandula Ravi, popularly known as Warangal Ravi, is a member of the Congress party’s Telangana election campaign committee. He has sought tickets from Wardhannapet in Warangal district or Chevella in Rangareddy.

Vinod Naik, state convener of the AICC Research Dept, has applied for the ticket from Khanapur in Nirmal district. Vinod Naik worked in different capacities at NSUI and Youth Congress.

Anilkumar Kamde, OU JAC leader applied for the party ticket from the Sirpur (T) of Komaram Bheem Asifabad district. Ravi Naik applied for a party ticket from Devarakonda in Nalgonda district and Kuruva Vijaykumar, who is working as TPCC secretary, applied for the ticket from Gadwal.

On the other hand, an OU student JAC leader who joined the BJP, Daruvu Ellanna, is aspiring for the party ticket from Manakonduru in Karimnagar district. He is now leading the BJP’s cultural troupe.

Gummadi Anuradha will contest as independent from Yellandu. She is daughter of five-time MLA, Gummadi Narsaiah, has announced her candidature as an independent from Yellandu. Anuradha is an Adivasi and working as assistant professor at Osmania University PG Law College, Hyderabad. She worked as its principal for some time.

Gummadi Narsaiah was a widely respected politician known for his simple living. He was the leader of CPI (ML- New Democracy).

Anuradha said BRS leaders approached her with an offer of ticket but she would contest the poll as an independent to ensure the completion of the Seetharama project and Bayyaram steel plant and improve the health and education in the area.