Anantapur: Dharmavaram town in Sathya Sai district witnessed clashes on Sunday when the supporters of BJP leader and former MLA G. Suryanarayana, who was earlier with TD, put up his flexi posters along with images of TDP chief N. Chandrababu Naidu and TD general secretary Lokesh, wishing people a Happy New Year.
Supporters of TD party in-charge in the town Paritala Sriram objected to these posters of the BJP leader with images of Chandrababu and Lokesh in different parts of Dharmavaram town, leading to a clash between the two groups.
Police intervened and separated the clashing groups. However, this has led to a tense situation prevailing in the town.
Suryanarayana had been a TD MLA between 2014–2019 from Dharmavaram assembly segment. He tasted defeat in 2019 polls against YSRC candidate K. Venkatrami Reddy. At the same time TD lost power in the state. Suryanarayana thereafter quit TD and joined BJP along with several other leaders.
However, Suryanarayana is now making efforts to appease the TD high command in an attempt to rejoin TD. But Telugu Desam in-charge Paritala Sriram is against it due to years’ long rivalry his father Paritala Ravindra had with Suryanarayana.
Paritala Sriram had become TD in-charge in Dharmavaram constituency after Suryanarayana quit the party for BJP. Sriram and his supporters are thus opposing Suryanarayana’s attempts to re-enter Telugu Desam.
“Suryanarayana is in no way connected to TD. He has been with the BJP. He should be using photos of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP state president Purandeswari. How can Suryanarayana use Chandrababu Naidu and Lokesh’s photos,” a close aide of Paritala Sriram asked.
TD in-charge Sriram is expecting a ticket from Dharmavaram assembly segment. Around the time, BJP leader Suryanarayana trying to make his way back to Telugu Desam has not gone down well with Sriram’s supporters, notwithstanding reports of a possible alliance between TD, Jana Sena and BJP.
Suryanarayana’s posters with images of the TD president have also appeared in Anantapur, raising many an eyebrow.
