Upset over not getting ticket, Telangana Congress leader attempts suicide

Hyderabad, Nov 8:  A Congress leader in Telangana on Wednesday consumed pesticides as he was upset over being denied ticket to contest the November 30 Assembly election.

Kasula Balaraju consumed pesticides in Banswada constituency in Nizamabad district.

He was shifted to a local hospital in Banswada and later shifted to government hospital in Nizamabad, where his condition is stated to be critical.

Balaraju had contested as Congress candidate in 2014 and 2018 elections and on both occasions, he lost to Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader and former minister and Assembly Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy.

He was aspiring for the Congress ticket again but the party decided to field Eanugu Ravinder Reddy, a former MLA from Yellareddy who recently quit the BJP to join the Congress.

Ravinder Reddy, a three-time MLA from Yellareddy, had lost 2018 from the same constituency on a BRS ticket. He had joined the BJP in 2021.

Upset over being denied ticket, Balaraju broke down in front of his supporters. He had threatened to commit suicide if the party leadership failed to reverse its decision.

Meanwhile, the rift in the party over allotment of ticket to Nilam Madhu Mudiraj in Patancheru constituency deepened on Wednesday. The party has not yet given him ticket amid the growing demand from the party leaders to change the candidate.

Senior party leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha has come out in support of Kata Srinivas Goud, who was denied ticket.

Srinivas Goud’s supporters had Tuesday staged protests at the party headquarters and also at the residence of Telangana Congress chief A. Revanth Reddy. Mudiraj had resigned from the BRS last month and joined Congress a few days ago after the ruling party denied him the ticket.