Two for the throne

Telangana Congress president Revanth Reddy and legislative party leader Bhatti Vikramarka are leading the race to be the chief minister face

- RAHUL DEVULAPALLI

IN THE LATEST series of Congress video ads, the final slide stands out. The ad concludes with the slogan ‘Maarpu Kaavali, Congress Raavali,’ which loosely translates to ‘Change is needed, and the Congress has to come (to power).’ Accompanying this slogan is a visual featuring two faces—Telangana Congress president A. Revanth Reddy and Congress Legislative Party leader Bhatti Vikramarka.

It is uncommon for the Congress to project a chief minister candidate before an election, but speculation is rife that if the Congress wins, one of these two would take that seat. Here is a look at both of their journeys:

Bhatti Vikramarka

For the Congress, Bhatti ticks all the boxes of a potential chief minister candidate. He is a dalit from the Mala community, has a degree from Hyderabad Central University, is an experienced hand who served as deputy speaker, whip, and assembly floor leader, and, most importantly, enjoys a non-controversial image.

Once a director of Andhra Bank, a nominated post, Bhatti went on to become an MLC, before winning the assembly elections three times from Madhira (2009, 2014, and 2018). Bhatti Anantharamulu, his eldest brother, was undivided Andhra Pradesh’s Congress president. The middle brother, Mallu Ravi, was an MP. This, however, does not take away from the way he has positioned himself as a strong dalit leader.

In a way, Bhatti is from the Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy school. It was the former chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh who backed Bhatti; the Congress wanted a credible dalit face to take on upper-caste leaders in his district of Khammam. And, even after YSR’s death, Bhatti’s political career kept flourishing.