Hyderabad: While the Congress has long been plagued by infighting and groupism, the issue of “coverts (double agents)” appears to be bothering the party, with Damodar Rajanarsimha, former deputy CM in undivided Andhra Pradesh and a Dalit leader, claiming that the party is infested with “covertism.”
Following the release of a list of PCC committees that omitted his name, Rajanarsimha claimed that the party was infested with "covertism," claiming that the lists created the impression that loyal party leaders would not receive proper recognition while "coverts" would, without naming the "coverts".
He alleged that some "coverts" had been given posts within the party without a basic understanding of Congress' history or ideology, and these "coverts" were indirectly helping the TRS government.
"An attempt is being made to demoralise the party members. Even those who do not understand the Congress ideology and are new to the party were appointed vice-president and general secretary, according to the lists. What criteria are used to select general secretaries and vice presidents," an enraged Rajanarsimha asked at a press conference.
His comments have fuelled the fire, and those who felt marginalised were flocking to the Gandhi Bhavan.
Earlier, Congress Legislature Party leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka expressed displeasure with the manner in which PCC panels were approved, claiming that despite holding an important position, he was not invited to the meeting that finalised the committee.
Former minister Konda Surekha too resigned from the newly formed executive committee, claiming that her appointment diminished her stature.
Mallu Ravi, PCC's senior vice-president, attempted to appease a group of leaders from the ST community who believed that their names were missing on Tuesday.
Asserting that proper representation was provided, Ravi, who is believed to be close to TPCC president Revanth Reddy, assured that the PCC leadership would discuss the matter with the AICC soon.
"This matter will be resolved, within a week, as Revanth Reddy will be meeting Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge in Delhi. According to the Udaipur Declaration, only 35 per cent (of leaders on the committees) are (from the) upper caste, with the rest representing SC, ST, BC, and minorities communities. Discrepancies, if any, will be evaluated, examined, and remedied,” he asserted.
Internal squabbles came to the fore after the AICC approved the constitutions of the executive and political affairs committees, as well as the appointment of 26 district Congress committee (DCC) presidents, 24 vice-presidents, and 84 general secretaries. The PCC committees were formed after the party's candidate, Sravanthi Reddy, lost the security deposit in the Munugode bypolls.
