Dr P Mitra, a trusted advisor and close confidante of film star and Praja Rayam Party general secretary, on Saturday resigned from the party because of ideological differences.
Dr Mitra, who was unhappy over the manner in which the PRP election tickets were distributed and the role Chiranjeevi's brother in law Allu Arvind had played in it, met Chiranjeevi on Saturday and handed over his resignation.
Dr Mitra was one the key players in the formation of PRP last year but later he was sidelined as the entire show was taken over by Allu Arvind, film producer. It was believed that Mitra had decided to quit the party even before the elections amid the allegations that PRP tickets were being sold to the highest bidders.
While many other senior figures, including party vice president Anjanjeya Reddy and party general secretary Prakala Prabhakar, quit the party, Mitra decided to stay put till the elections were over.
The latest blow came even before the PRP could recover from its poor performance in the recent elections. PRP had won only 18 assembly seats and drew a blank in the Lok Sabha polls.
Significantly, two younger brothers of Chiranjeevi Naga Babu and Pavan Kalyan are also keeping aloof and have gone back to the film shooting. They were also unhappy with the domination of Allu Arvind. None of the persons recommended by them were given the election tickets by Chiranjeevi.