Rebel TDP leader suspended from party

The Telugu Desam Party late Wednesday suspended MLA and rebel leader Nagam Janardhana Reddy from the party.

The TDP politburo, in an emergency meeting at the residence of party chief N Chandrababu Naidu, decided to suspend Nagam for indulging in anti-party activities.

Incidentally, Nagam was also a member of the TDP politburo and had been a member of the party for 29 years.

"The politburo unanimously decided to suspend Nagam from TDP for acting against the party's interests and making disparaging remarks against Chandrababu and other leaders," politburo member P Chandrasekhar told newsmen at the end of the meeting.

Of late, Nagam had been speaking against the party and its leadership, particularly on the Telangana statehood issue.

He recently organised a rally in support of Telangana in his Nagarkurnool constituency without using the party banner.

Also, he

made critical comments against Chandrababu Naidu demanding that the latter write a letter to Union Home Minister P Chidambaram spelling out the TDP's stand on the statehood issue.

Two other MLAs K Harishwar Reddy and J Ramanna also joined chorus with Nagam on the issue.

Nagam served as a minister in Chandrababu Naidu's Cabinet between 1995 and 2004 and had been the TD Legislature Party's deputy leader from 2004 to 2009.

In 2009, he was made chairman of the assembly public accounts committee.

For a brief period he also acted as convenor of Telangana Telugu Desam Forum, an informal panel within TDP to take up activities related to statehood struggle.

"The politburo unanimously decided to suspend Nagam from TDP for acting against the party's interests and making disparaging remarks against Chandrababu and other leaders," politburo member P Chandrasekhar told newsmen at the end of the meeting.