Hyderabad: Telangana former deputy chief minister and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) senior leader Kadiyam Srihari and his daughter Kadiyam Kavya joined the Congress on Sunday, March 31.
They were welcomed into the party by AICC Telangana in-charge Deepa Dasmunsi and chief minister A Revanth Reddy.
The development can be termed as a serious jolt to the pink party, especially in the Warangal district.
This comes one day after GHMC Mayor Gadwal Vijayalaxmi ditched the BRS and joined the Congress officially on Saturday, March 30.
The Kadiyam family’s decision to join the Congress comes despite the BRS naming Kavya as its candidate from Warangal Parliament seat for the upcoming LS polls.
It was immediately unclear if Congress would field Srihari or his daughter for the Warangal Lok Sabha seat
While withdrawing from the contest for Warangal Lok Sabha seat, Kavya wrote to BRS chief KCR that the allegations of corruption, encroachments, phone tapping and liquor scam against party leaders have damaged the party’s image. She also mentioned that the lack of coordination and cooperation among BRS leaders in the district caused more damage to the party.
BRS had decided to field Kavya after denying the ticket to sitting MP Pasunuri Dayakar. Peeved over this, Dayakar joined the Congress party.
Dayakar was elected in a 2015 by-election and in 2019, from Warangal, a seat reserved for Scheduled Castes.
Srihari’s political history
Hailing from the Dalit community, Srihari began his political career in 1987 when he joined the Telugu Desam Party and later contested the position of mayor of Warangal Municipal Corporation.
Over the years, he served in different capacities within the party, including as a minister in the cabinets of NT Rama Rao and N Chandrababu Naidu, handling portfolios such as Marketing, Social Welfare, Education, and Irrigation.
In 2004, Srihari lost a general election but won a by-election in 2008, representing the Station Ghanpur constituency.
He was instrumental in advocating for Telangana statehood within the TDP party and eventually joined the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) in 2013, supporting the cause of Telangana.
Srihari has also served as a Member of Parliament from the Warangal Parliamentary constituency and held various positions within the TRS (now BRS), including being a Politburo member.
Between 2014-18, Srihari served as the deputy chief minister and the education minister in the KCR-led state cabinet.
In the recently held Assembly polls in 2023, he won as an MLA from Station Ghanpur.
(This is a developing story. The latest version will be updated).
