TDP Leaders Errabelli, Revanth Fight in the Open

• Errabelli enraged over Revanth employing his ex-PA
• TDLP leader asks Working President to be in limits
• Revanth retorts, says he will confine Dayakar in room and beat if messed up with him

The internal leadership crisis in Telangana Telugu Desam Party has come to the fore;the rival leaders - TTDLP leader Errabelli Dayakar Rao and the new working president of the party Revanth Reddy - tried to settle their scores in the full view of the party leaders and cadres at the party headquarters - NTR Trust Bhavan on Saturday.

The trouble erupted when Dayakar Rao spotted his ex-PA, whom he removed from service recently, in the party office and on further enquiry he came to know that the ex-PA was employed by Revanth Reddy as his PA. An enraged Dayakar asked Revanth why did he employ the man whom he removed from service. For this Revanth replied recklessly saying the PA was removed only because he came to Chanchalguda jail on the day of his release. Revanth was in jail for a month after being caught red-handed by Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) while bribing the Anglo-Indian MLA Stephenson to get his vote for TDP candidate in MLC elections on May 31 this year.

Revanth was released on July 1 on a conditional bail and the TDP cadres celebrated his release and took out a procession from the jail. However, Errabelli left on some foreign trip the same day. After seeing off the boss at the airport, his PA went straight to the jail and participated in the procession. On hearing about this after his return, Errabelli removed the PA from service. Then the PA approached Revanth and joined as his PA.

The PA was spotted by Dayakar in the party office at a meeting to discuss about Warangal by-election. Errabelli could not control his reaction over the issue and questioned Revanth about it. Already at loggerheads for quite some time over the party leadership issue, the two leaders sought to fight it out on the spot throwing all decencies and decorum in the dustbin. Both the TDP leaders sparred verbally like street fighters, shocking their own partymen who intervened to control the fight. The party president L. Ramana also warned Revanth against his highhanded attitude.

The fight continued even in the meeting. While Dayakar Rao suggested that the BJP be given the Warangal MP seat as the party contested in general elections last time, Revanth vehemently opposed the proposal and insisted on TDP contesting from Warangal as, he claimed, the party has better prospects to win than the BJP.