Former Andhra CM Kiran Kumar Reddy joins BJP, says Congress ‘not interested in course correction’

Launching a scathing attack against the Congress' method of functioning, Reddy said in a press briefing: "They want authority to control but don't want to work hard and don't want responsibility."

Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy joins Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the presence of party MP Arun Singh (right), at BJP HQ in New Delhi, Friday, April 7, 2023. (PTI Photo)

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Former chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh, Nallari Kiran Kumar Reddy, 63, joined BJP on Friday, less than a month after he resigned from the Congress.

Reddy said that Congress was “taking wrong decisions” and paying the price for them. “The sad part is they are not interested in doing any course correction. If a mistake has been made, it should be acknowledged and efforts should be made to correct it. There is no such thing in Congress. Due to the Congress high command’s bad decisions, the party is losing everywhere,” he said.

Reddy, who was the last chief minister of Andhra Pradesh before its bifurcation in 2014, had resigned from the Congress on March 12, the second time in nine years.

Former CM of Andhra Pradesh, Shri Kiran Kumar Reddy joins BJP at Party Headquarters in New Delhi. #JoinBJP https://t.co/3XhDcVIHB2

— BJP (@BJP4India) April 7, 2023

Reddy also praised the BJP leadership for taking bold decisions in the interest of the nation. “The commitment with which they are implementing their welfare policies is very commendable. I am motivated by the vision and commitment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I have joined the party now and whatever role is assigned, I will do it enthusiastically,” he said.

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Reddy took over as the 16th chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh after his predecessor K Rosaiah stepped down citing personal reasons. The Congress leadership had appointed Rosaiah to the post after then CM Y S Rajasekhara Reddy died in a helicopter crash in September 2009.

A cricketer-turned-politician, Reddy is a four-time MLA who won from Vayalpadu (merged with the Pileru Assembly constituency) in the 1989, 1999, and 2004 Assembly elections. In the 1994 polls, he lost to the Telugu Desam Party but won again in 2009 from Pileru.

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