Hyderabad: Following talks of party veteran T Jeevan Reddy planning to sever his four-decades-long association with the Congress, seniors from the party went to Jagtial to meet him on Tuesday. Telangana Congress president B Mahesh Kumar Goud, AICC secretary Sachin Sawant and govt whip Adi Srinivas met Jeevan, who has in the past complained multiple times to the party leadership against importance being given to alleged turncoat MLA Sanjay Kumar of BRS.Jeevan had recently told his close followers and supporters that he would quit the Congress. There are reports that he is likely to join the BRS, but neither Jeevan nor his followers confirmed it.The TPCC chief and the AICC secretary rushed to pacify Jeevan, who is set to hold a meeting with his constituency leaders and followers on Wednesday to take a final call on severing ties with the Congress. Though Jeevan welcomed the Congress top leaders, sources said he did not give any commitment to staying in the party. Goud, after holding talks with Jeevan, said: “We understand that Jeevan Reddy was hurt due to some decisions taken by the party after winning the assembly elections with a thin majority. He is one of the senior-most party leaders. The Telangana Congress and AICC have high respect for him. We told him what is required to make him stay back in the Congress and urged him to reconsider decision. We are going back to Hyderabad with the hope that Jeevan will stay back.” However, sources said Jeevan’s supporters continued to remove party banners from his residence in Jagtial even on Tuesday. Of late, Jeevan attributed his dissent against the Congress to what he termed “growing interference” of “defected” MLAs in the party affairs and cautioned the high command that it would dent the image of the Congress at the national level. “Respect is above everything and in its absence, there is no meaning in continuing in politics,” Jeevan said. The veteran Congress leader has been locked in a bitter fight with Sanjay Kumar, one of the 10 MLAs of BRS who switched loyalties to the Congress. IT minister D Sridhar Babu also met Jeevan a couple of days ago.
