In a bid to set the proverbial cat among the political pigeons, Bharatiya Janata Party MP Dharmapuri Arvind made a sensational claim on Monday.
The Nizamabad MP hinted that Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy could do a “Suvendu Adhikari” to the Congress.
Arvind claimed that Revanth Reddy could switch political sides, just as Suvendu Adhikari did in West Bengal when he quit the Trinamool Congress and joined the BJP six years ago.
Arvind went on to say that the Congress leadership had made a mistake by choosing Revanth Reddy as Chief Minister, ignoring senior party leaders who had spent decades in the Congress.
The BJP MP then drew a comparison between Revanth Reddy and Suvendu Adhikari, who joined the BJP and later emerged as one of Mamata Banerjee’s strongest political opponents in West Bengal.
Arvind also claimed that the Congress would face a major defeat in the next Telangana Assembly elections.
“Congress will face an unprecedented defeat in 2028-29 here in Telangana. They lost badly in 1985 and in 1994. In 2028-29, under the leadership of Revanth Reddy, the Congress party is going to face a disastrous defeat,” Dharmapuri Arvind said.
The BJP MP’s remarks have gained political significance as they come days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a widely discussed comment, seen as being directed at Revanth Reddy, during a public event in Hyderabad.
The Prime Minister had told the Telangana Chief Minister: “Aap jahan pahunchna chahte hain, nahi pahunch payenge... achha hai ki mere se hi judo,” meaning, “You may not reach where you want to reach... it is better that you join me.”
The PM’s comment triggered intense speculation in political circles. Revanth Reddy, who was present on the stage at the time, simply smiled at the remark.
Referring to Modi’s Hyderabad comment, Dharmapuri Arvind said, “I don’t know what that means exactly, as I am just a ground-level worker in the BJP. I am not sure if there is a political link there. I really don’t know if something is brewing, something similar to what Suvendu Adhikari did.”
He, however, added that Telangana would witness “high-decibel politics” in the next two years, eventually leading to the BJP coming to power in the state.
Dharmapuri Arvind’s comments are expected to trigger strong reactions from the Congress and the Chief Minister, especially at a time when political battlelines are sharply drawn between the BJP and the ruling party ahead of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation elections expected later this year.
