T pressure gives DS straw, to continue on as PCC chief

The TElangana Agitation may have not proved to be too helpful to the business community for their growth, but for Pradesh Congress Committee president D Srinivas it has come as a blessing in disguise.

The All India Congress Committee on Friday decided to continue with Mr Srinivas as the Pradesh Congress Committee president, despite him having lost two successive elections.

According to an official statement by the AICC, Mr Srinivas will continue to hold the office till further orders are issued.

The AICC decision was taken keeping the increasingly strident calls for a separate Telangana state. The High Command’s decision to continue on with Mr Srinivas who hails from Telangana, is largely seen as a carrot to keep the Congress leaders interested.

Calls for Mr Srinivas’s ouster from the post had started to emanate from various quarters in the Congress party after he lost his second successive election from Nizamabad Urban constituency in the recently held by-elections to 12 of the Assembly seats.

Mr Srinivas’s being told to continue on as the PCC chief for the third time will certainly help in keeping the Congress leaders interested that the Centre is keeping the Telangana interests in mind. The next move by the Centre, according to political watchers, is that a Deputy Chief Minister from the region will also be named.

On receiving the news, Mr Srinivas said he would carry on with the job responsibly and work for the upliftment of the Congress party.