Now that Revanth Reddy is set to take over as the PCC chief officially, he is sure to encounter several challenges en route. He carries youthful enthusiasm, derring-do and a charismatic approach. But, how he faces the challenges and steers the party through the troubles will decide his success or otherwise.
Here are the five big challenges that Revanth may soon face in the days to come:
CASH-FOR-VOTE CASE: Revanth Reddy comes with a baggage. He is an accused in the Cash for vote scam. While he was in the TDP, he was accused of trying to bribe Anglo-Indian MLA Stephenson to vote against the ruling TRS in an MLC election. The video clips and audio files of Revanth Reddy with Stephenson are in the public domain. The TRS government may try to rake up this issue. Now he is in the Congress, but the TDP vintage case might torment him.
PAST HISTORY OF PARTY-HOPPING: Both the BJP, TRS and his detractors in the Congress Party may try to pull out clips and comments from his past political avatars. They will use these to rile at Revanth Reddy. His earlier comments on Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi could be brought out of the closet. These will be of nuisance value for Revanth Reddy.
SENIOR PROBLEM: Tackling seniors would be a major issue for any PCC chief and more so for Revanth. Several senior Congress leaders are unhappy with the quick rise of Revanth Reddy. They would throw spanners in his work. The opposition could range from total non-cooperation to blatant opposition. Many could even lodge complaints with the high command against Revanth Reddy.
COVERTS IN CONGRESS: Handling coverts in the Congress would be a huge task for Revanth Reddy. There are several Congress leaders who have business and friendly relations with the TRS. They would leak information about their strategies and action plans to the TRS leaders, who could use the info to pre-empt him. How he handles them will decide his future performance as PCC chief.
HANDLING THE YOUTH: Living up to the expectations of the Congress Party’s young cadre is the fifth big challenge for Revanth Reddy. His biggest support comes from this sector and if Revanth gets bogged down in running the party, handling the seniors and patching up the warring groups, he would end up going the way of the past presidents. His term too would become insipid.