Two TRS biggies tussle for supremacy comes to fore

Hyderabad: Two leaders, who did never see eye to eye with each other when they were in rival parties, are now in the same party, but the differences between seem to remain undiminished with their respective followers fighting for supremacy.

There was a bigger rivalry between two important leaders from the city, particularly from Secunderabad, T Padma Rao Goud and T Srinivas Yadav in the past.

Now they are in the same party. However, the followers of both the parties have made it clear that the rivalry between them still remains though it does not come into the open. But the battle is still fought for supremacy.

Padma Rao and Srinivas Yadav were in different parties. While Padma Rao was in Congress, Yadav was in Telugu Desam Party. Later, Padma Rao joined TRS and Yadav was still in TDP.

After decimation of TDP from the State, Yadav also joined TRS and strengthened his place in the party by getting Ministerial berth in Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao's Cabinet.

Goud was Minister in the first Cabinet of KCR but during the second term he was made Deputy Speaker of Assembly.

Of late, the followers of both the leaders are fighting for supremacy in Secunderabad. The followers of Padma Rao are said to be unhappy with the growing influence of Yadav in the party.

They alleged that the family members of Yadav were getting prominence. Goud's followers alleged that the there was more interference of Yadav and his family in Secunderabad, the segment represented by the Deputy Speaker.

"Our leader was given Deputy Speaker and Yadav was made Minister. Now his son (Sai Kiran Yadav) is being encouraged," said a TRS leader and follower of Padma Rao.

There have been instances when Padma Rao did not attend the party meetings. During the Lok Sabha elections Goud stayed away from the party's public meeting in the city at LB Stadium.

The party leaders said Goud had not attended the meeting because he was the Deputy Speaker. There were similar instances in the recent time when Goud stayed away from the meeting, said a TRS leader.

The party leadership is learnt to have found that the differences between the two leaders are still persisting. The party had organised a meeting for membership drive in Secunderabad recently.

The TRS had organised a membership drive in Secunderabad. TRS working president K T Rama Rao did not attend the programme.

KTR attended a programme at Telangana Bhavan on the same morning.

The meeting was held without KTR, but both Yadav and Goud were present at the meeting.

What was interesting in the meeting was that Srinivas Yadav's son and Padma Rao Goud's sons too were on the dais.

Until now Padma Rao's sons used to work behind the scenes but the Secunderabad meeting brought them to centre stage, said a TRS leader.