Kesineni accuses Allu of promoting casteism, may join TDP

Kesineni accuses Allu of promoting casteism, may join TDP


Prajarajyam party Vijayawada Urban district convenor Kesineni Nani on Wednesday lashed out at state general secretary and
Chiranjeevi's brother-in-law Allu Aravind for encouraging casteism in the party.

Responding to the reported show-cause notice served on him by the PRP high command following the Republic Day incidents in Vijayawada, Nani claimed that he could not reach out to PRP chief Chiranjeevi and Aravind despite several attempts. "I was not given an opportunity to speak to them at least over phone to present my case. Why am I being singled out when I am not at fault?" Nani said.

Nani, who operates the largest private bus fleet in the state, joined the PRP with lot of fanfare two months ago and was recently appointed as convenor of the Vijayawada PRP unit.

On January 26, he allegedly assaulted PRP Krishna district convenor Vijaya Nirmala and her husband in Vijayawada. Vijaya Nirmala is a close relative of Allu Aravind and this prompted the PRP leadership to reportedly issue a show-cause notice threatening disciplinary action against him.

Nani said everything was fine in Vijayawada PRP until Congress MLA Vangaveeti Radhakrishnan switched sides. "Casteism, particularly the dominance of Kapus, grew in PRP only after Radha joined the party. I was striving to strengthen the party in Vijayawada city with the help of my supporters and also the cooperation of the party rank and file, besides Chiranjeevi fans. But Radha vitiated the entire atmosphere," Nani remarked.

He said contrary to PRP's plank of social justice, 75 per cent of PRP posts in Vijayawada and Krishna district units were given to Kapus and the remaining to other communities.

Nani said he would give a detailed reply to the show-cause notice once he received it. "It will be up to the party leadership to decide whether I should continue in the party," he said even as speculation was rife that Nani might join TDP