Hyderabad, March 26: The ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi and the Congress in Telangana were engaged in a war of words Tuesday, as campaigning for the Lok Sabha polls gathered pace in the state. At an election meeting, state Congress president N Uttam Kumar Reddy, who is contesting from Nalgonda Lok Sabha constituency,alleged that the TRS did not have a right to seek votes as it has failed to do anything substantial for the state despite having 16 MPs on its side.

He was referring to the TRS' campaign, seeking 16 out of the total 17 seats in Telangana (leaving Hyderabad for AIMIM) so that it can play a crucial role post elections and secure a better deal for Telangana. The TRS had won 11 seats on its own and three MPs of the outgoing Lok Sabha switched over to the party, he said. One MP each of BJP and AIMIM were also on its side, he claimed. Lok Sabha Elections 2019: Congress Fields State Unit Chief N Uttam Kumar Reddy to Boost Prospects in Telangana.

"Though TRS and KCR had 16 MPs, KCR could not achieve anything for Telangana and he does not have the right to seek votes again," Reddy said. Meanwhile, TRS working president K T Rama Rao alleged that a vote to BJP would help Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while a vote to the Congress would only help the party president Rahul Gandhi. A victory for TRS would help Telangana, he said. Attacking Uttam Kumar Reddy, Rama Rao said the PCC president should quit as MLA first if he was confident about winning in Lok Sabha elections.

Rama Rao was speaking at an event where former Congress MLA B Bikshamaiah Goud joined the TRS. The development compounded the misery for Congress as nine of its MLAs announced during this month that they would quit the party and join TRS. Goud is a key leader in the Nalgonda region. Speculation has been rife that former minister Sunita Laxma Reddy, senior leader from Medak, would also join TRS. The Congress said in a release Bikshamaiah Goud, Sunita Laxma Reddy and TPCC general secretary Palle Lakshman Kumar Goud have been suspended by the party's disciplinary action committee.

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