Konda Sushmitha Row: Mahesh Kumar Goud Hits Back, Defends Congress Leadership

TPCC president Mahesh Kumar Goud has strongly objected to remarks made by Konda Sushmitha, daughter of Telangana minister Konda Surekha, targeting Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and the Congress leadership.

Speaking to reporters in Nizamabad on Thursday, Goud said Konda Surekha was an experienced politician who had spent several years in public life. He said the party had issued a show-cause notice seeking an explanation over her daughter’s statements.

Goud said the Congress disciplinary committee would examine the explanation submitted by Konda Surekha before deciding on any further action. He maintained that the party would follow its internal disciplinary process while dealing with the issue.

On the selection of election candidates, Goud stressed that individuals cannot declare themselves as Congress MLA candidates. He said candidate selection was governed by a formal process involving the party’s Election Committee and the Congress Working Committee (CWC).

“No individual announcement can be treated as final, whether it comes from Revanth Reddy or anyone else,” Goud said, underlining that the Congress high command would have the final say in choosing candidates.

Responding to the reference to “Pachha Congress”, Goud said such distinctions had no place within the party. Once a person becomes a Congress member, he said, there could be no classification based on whether they belonged to an old or new faction. “Everyone is a Congress leader,” he maintained.

Goud also sought to highlight the contributions of different groups within the party, saying long-time Congress leaders accounted for about 70 per cent of the party’s efforts to return to power, while leaders who joined later contributed the remaining 30 per cent.

On the broader political agenda, Goud reiterated that Congress remains committed to social justice and claimed that the party has consistently stood by the Backward Classes (BCs).

He also accused the BRS of unnecessarily politicising the issue surrounding Section 22-A. According to Goud, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had already directed officials to rectify mistakes committed at the lower levels of administration.

Goud’s comments come amid internal discussions within the ruling Congress over party discipline, candidate selection and differences among leaders, with the leadership stressing the need to follow established organisational procedures.