PNS|Hyderabad
Nalgonda MP Capt. N. Uttam Kumar Reddy and his wife, ex-MLA Padmavathi Reddy, have strongly denied the rumours that they are leaving the Congress and joining the BRS.
In a joint media statement on Saturday, the couple strongly condemned the rumours and attributed them to a Congress leader who holds an important post in the party.
Uttam Kumar Reddy said that he was proud to have served the Congress for 30 years continuously, winning six consecutive elections without losing a single one after 1994.
He added that his wife, Padmavathi Reddy, had been an MLA representing Kodad and had lost the 2018 Assembly elections by a few hundred votes. She is now in Kodad and working for the people there to the best of her ability, as well as the Congress as the PCC Vice President, he said.
The couple do not have children and works 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for the public with the highest level of integrity and commitment.
“I am proud to have served my country as an IAF fighter pilot on the China and Pakistan borders. I risked my life to defend my country, and I am grateful for the opportunity. After my time in the IAF, I served as a senior officer with President R. Venkataraman and President Shankar Dayal Sharma in the office of the President at the Rashtrapathi Bhavan in New Delhi. I resigned my government job to join the Congress and serve the public. I have been fortunate to have been elected to office six consecutive times, five times as an MLA and once as an MP. As the Housing Minister of United Andhra Pradesh, I oversaw the largest ever house building programme ever in India after Independence. My wife, Padmavathi Reddy and I have dedicated the best years of our lives to serving the Congress and the public.”
Uttam said that he and his wife had been the target of “completely false, defamatory stories” for the last two years. He said that these stories had been “deeply painful” and had been part of a “targeted campaign” to undermine his standing in the Congress and eliminate his associates.
He said that he was unhappy with certain issues in the party, but would follow due internal process and would not speak about them to the press.
He also said that he had never met or spoken to Chief Minister KCR other than in the Assembly during his five terms as an MLA, or at the Raj Bhavan Independence Day function, or at an official all-party meeting on the Telangana State issue.
He also reiterated that he had no business, contracts or land dealings with any government.
The Nalgonda MP said that the reports in the media and on social media that he might leave the Congress and join the BRS were false and baseless.
“It is also unfortunate that a leader of the Congress holding an important party post is spreading these rumours to undermine my position in the party and to lower my public image. I condemn these rumours on social media and media. They are totally false. A couple of YouTube channels and media houses closely associated with a Congress leader have been publishing false, defamatory stories about me and my wife which have caused us pain. We condemn the baseless, false stories of us resigning from the Congress and joining the BRS,” they said.
Uttam reiterated his unwavering commitment to the Congress and the public and urged the media and the public to ignore rumours about him joining the BRS.
