Telangana's Endowment and Forest Minister Konda Surekha was served a show cause notice by the Congress party on Thursday, 20 August, after her daughter Sushmita publicly attacked Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy at a birthday event in Warangal district. The notice, issued by the party's disciplinary committee, marks the second time in under a year that Surekha has faced internal heat over Sushmita's remarks against the CM.

What Sushmita Said

At her mother's birthday celebrations held at Prakala in Warangal district on Wednesday, Sushmita openly criticised Revanth Reddy for publicly backing sitting legislator Revuri Prakash Reddy for re-election from the Prakala Assembly constituency — a seat Sushmita has her own ambitions for.

Sushmita issued a direct challenge to Prakash Reddy to resign and contest a bye-election against her, asserting that even active campaigning by the Chief Minister would not prevent her from winning. She declared that Prakala is her family's political stronghold and warned that if denied a ticket, she would contest as an independent candidate.

She also alleged that it was owing to the support of her father Konda Murali and mother Konda Surekha that Revanth Reddy rose to become Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president, and accused him of reneging on a promise to make her father a Member of the Legislative Council (MLC).

Corruption Allegations Against CM's Family

Sushmita went further, levelling corruption allegations against the Chief Minister's family. She claimed that a shell company linked to Revanth Reddy's brother was allotted government land valued at ₹200 crore. She also accused the CM of favouring leaders who had migrated from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP). These are allegations; the Chief Minister's office has not publicly responded to them as per available reports.

Congress Party's Response

Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) chief Mahesh Kumar Goud, speaking to reporters in Nizamabad, confirmed that the party's disciplinary committee had sought a written explanation from Minister Surekha. He stated that a final decision on action would be taken after her reply is received, while making clear that speaking against the party in public would inevitably invite disciplinary consequences.

A Pattern of Friction

This is not the first time Sushmita's remarks have put her mother in a difficult position. Last year, Sushmita had targeted Revanth Reddy after a police team arrived at Konda Surekha's Hyderabad residence in connection with the search for the minister's sacked Officer on Special Duty (OSD) N. Sumanth, who faced allegations of threatening a cement company official with a firearm for extortion. Sushmita had refused to allow the police team entry without an arrest warrant and alleged that Sumanth was booked to target her parents. She also made allegations against CM Revanth Reddy, advisor Vem Narender Reddy, and Revenue Minister P. Srinivas Reddy, claiming her parents were being targeted on account of their backward caste identity.

Following that episode, Konda Surekha had publicly apologised to Revanth Reddy in October. The recurrence of such outbursts — and the party's renewed disciplinary action — suggests the underlying tensions within Telangana's ruling Congress unit remain unresolved. How the party handles Surekha's response will be a test of its internal discipline ahead of the next state elections.