Birthday flex banners put up for Dr Preethi Reddy, daughter-in-law of former Telangana minister and senior Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader Ch Malla Reddy, have triggered a fresh controversy within the party in the Medchal constituency.
Large flex banners and cut-outs wishing Preethi Reddy on her birthday were installed in several areas, including Chintal, Suchitra, Jeedimetla and IDPL.
Some of the banners were later torn down by people identified as BRS workers, with videos of the incidents circulating on social media. Apparently, the workers objected to the absence of photographs of senior party leaders on the banners.
The banners prominently featured Malla Reddy and his son-in-law Marri Rajasekhar Reddy, while photographs of BRS president K Chandrashekar Rao, working president K T Rama Rao and local representatives, including Quthbullapur MLA K P Vivekanand and MLC Shambipur Raju, were missing.
Some BRS workers reportedly questioned why senior party leaders and elected representatives had been left out of banners associated with a prominent political family in the constituency.
Local BRS workers have alleged that Malla Reddy’s family has been ignoring the party leadership and local elected representatives and has been keeping away from party activities.
At the same time, supporters of Preethi Reddy have argued that the banners were put up by her fans and well-wishers as part of a personal birthday celebration and were not official party banners. They questioned why the banners were being viewed through a political lens.
Preethi Reddy also responded sharply to the incident, saying that while her banners could be torn down, her morale could not be destroyed.
She reportedly said that she had celebrated her birthday without involving party politics and that political affiliations should not be imposed on banners put up personally by her supporters.
There had been speculation in the past that Preethi Reddy was considering shifting her loyalties to the Bharatiya Janata Party.
She visited the BJP state office in April, triggering talk of a possible political move. However, she later said that Malla Reddy would remain with the BRS and that the family continued to respect the party leadership.
There have also been reports in recent months about differences between Malla Reddy’s camp and sections of the BRS leadership in the Medchal-Malkajgiri region.
The latest flex controversy has once again brought those differences into the spotlight.
Whether the BRS leadership intervenes in the matter or treats it as a local-level dispute remains to be seen.
