Hyderabad: Social media campaigns drive wedge between Congress leaders

Hyderabad: Aggressive campaigns on social media like Facebook and WhatsApp by few leaders have led to a new rift among the Congressmen as they are divided into opposing and supporting groups.

The situation has led to the intervention of the high command which has issued warning to the leaders on the verbal duel against both groups.

The AICC incharge general secretary RC Khuntia made it clear that any leader should not go to the media against each other. Few leaders of the Congress are aggressive on the social media and they have been promoting themselves through it.

These leaders have started their own pages and groups in the media and making posts on them regularly. Separate teams have been operating these pages and promoting their leaders aggressively. The social media teams of them have been praising their leaders and presenting them as choice of the people.

The aggressive campaign of these leaders has raised the hackles of the other leaders who could not promote themselves on the social media. The leaders who are handicapped in the social media campaigns are worried about the aggressiveness of their opponents in the party.

Those who oppose aggressive social media campaign of the others have been alleging that the Facebook and WhatsApp have been used to influence the minds of the high command. The objective of aggressive social media campaigns was to secure the PCC president and other important posts of the party.

MLA from Sangareddy Assembly constituency T Jagga Reddy who do not have any pages on the social media and groups on the WhatsApp openly criticised the leaders who are aggressive on social media.

He said that the social media campaigners have been using the Facebook and WhatsApp to spread malice against other leaders. He said that he does not have the support of social media, and he could not counter the aggressive campaign of others.

Apart from Jagga Reddy few other senior leaders have also made complaints against the social media campaign of their party men and made public statements.

They said that though they have lot of following among the Congress workers, they are denied the advantage due to the social media campaigns of others.

As the brawl between the leaders reached the peak, AICC incharge general secretary RC Khuntia issued strong warning to the leaders on the social media campaigns and public statements against them.

He made it clear that the leaders should not make any posts on the social media about the differences in the party and make allegations against each other. If there was any issue, the leaders should make complaints to the high command.