Anantapur: Slain Anantapur warlord Maddelacheruvu Suri alias Gangula Suryanarayana Reddy’s wife, G. Bhanumathi, a strong Congress leader, who led the faction for years together, has been silent for the past one year. She is now all set to join YSR Congress soon after meeting with the party cadre.
Bhanumathi, a native of Bengaluru, struggled alone against rivals and also political dissident groups, within the party, since the sensational Jubilee Hills car bomb blast, in which her husband was the prime accused and served life term sentence.
Though, she was fielded against another warlord and faction rival, Paritala Ravindra, during 2004 elections, from Penukonda Assembly segment, she was defeated. After that she was not encouraged by the party district leadership, to stand for the later elections.
In 2009 elections, the Congress had fielded B. Sreeramulu from Peunkonda against Paritala Ravindra. Bhanumathi worked in favour of Sreeramulu in the elections. Later, J.C. Diwakar Reddy group leaders developed dissidence after encouraging Topudurthi Prakash Reddy in Rapthadu.
Key mandals of erstwhile Penukonda-Kanaganipalli, Ramagiri, C K Palli were added to Rapthadu Assembly, during the shuffling of the Assembly segment.
The Congress fielded T. Prakash Reddy with recommendation of J. C. Diwakar Reddy against P. Ravindra’s wife Sunitha. By the time, Maddela. Suri was released from the prison and stayed at Hyderabad, till he was gunned down by his close aide, Bhanu Kiran.
Suri, reportedly did not support the Congress candidate in the last elections, in Rapthadu, though his rival’s family member, Sunitha contested. Bhanumathi spend most of the time at Bengaluru with her son and family members.
She arrived at Maddelacheruvu to pay tributes at her husband’s grave on the occasion of his 3rd death anniversary on Friday. Confirming on shifting her loyalties to YSRC, Bhanumathi alleged that the CM failed to guard party cadre in the state.
