Revanth Reddy Counters Digvijaya Singh With Sonia Gandhi Praise

Revanth Reddy on Monday stepped into an emerging internal debate within the Congress, a day after senior party leader Digvijaya Singh praised the organisational strength of the BJP and the RSS in a social media post.

Invoking the leadership of Sonia Gandhi, Revanth Reddy highlighted how leaders from the political margins rose to the country’s highest office under her stewardship. In a post on X, the Telangana Chief Minister cited the rise of P V Narasimha Rao, who began his political career in a remote Telangana village, and Manmohan Singh, an economist who later led the country as Prime Minister.

Revanth Reddy’s remarks were widely seen as a direct response to Digvijaya Singh’s post, which had praised the organisational discipline of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the Bharatiya Janata Party, drawing mixed reactions from within the Congress.

Singh had shared an old photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi from the mid-1990s, describing it as an illustration of how grassroots organisational strength can elevate a worker to the highest political office. The post triggered unease within sections of the Congress, with some leaders interpreting it as implicit praise of ideological rivals.

The exchange exposed differing views within the party. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor defended Singh’s remarks, saying conversations around strengthening party organisation were natural and necessary. In contrast, Congress MP Manickam Tagore strongly criticised the RSS, rejecting any comparison or lessons from the organisation.

Political observers say Revanth Reddy’s intervention has brought the internal divide into sharper focus, reflecting two competing approaches within the Congress — one advocating organisational reform and introspection, and the other emphasising the party’s legacy leadership and traditional power structure.