6 BRS MLCs Join Congress, KTR Questions Rahul’s Vow To End Defections

Hyderabad: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader KT Rama Rao lashed out at Rahul Gandhi after six of its Members of Legislative Council (MLCs) switched to Congress late on Thursday.

Popular as KTR, the leader took to his social media handle on ‘X’ to question Congress’s Lok Sabha election manifesto which vowed to amend the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution to automatically disqualify MPs and MLAs who jump the ship.

Sharing an image of the manifesto, KTR wrote, “BRS MP Keshava Rao resigned after joining Congress. Welcome his decision. What about the BRS MLA who defected and contested Lok Sabha on Congress ticket? What about half a dozen other BRS MLAs who defected to Congress?”

“@RahulGandhi is this how you are going to uphold the constitution? If you can’t make BRS MLAs resign, how would Nation trust that you were committed to schedule 10 amendment as per congress manifesto? Yeh Kaisa Nyay Patra Hain?,” KTR wrote on ‘X’.

The turncoat MLCs – Dande Vital, Bhanuprasad Rao, MS Prabhakar, Boggaparu Dayanand, and Egge Mallesham – joined Congress in the presence of Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy after he returned from New Delhi.

At present, in the 40-member house, there are 25 BRS members. The Congress has four. But, with the latest defections, Congress’ strength in the Legislative Council is set to increase to 10. There are four nominated MLCs, two members from AIMIM, one each from BJP, PRTU, and one independent MLC. Two seats are vacant.

The K Chandrasekhar Rao-led party, BRS, had been grappling with defections ever since it lost the Assembly polls in the state last year. Six of its MLAs had earlier defected to the Congress party.

In an interview to the Times Now news channel, Telangana Deputy CM, Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, said: “I really feel bad and pity for the TRS (BRS) and BJP because they are the parties, who started all this (defections)…It is so unfortunate, even they have gone to the extent of taking other party MLAs and including them in the cabinet.”