When he started the ‘Prajya Rajyam’, lakhs of people turned up for his ‘Tirupati’ Sabha, cutting across caste and regional lines in the hope that he would prove to be a capable leader. Alas, their hopes were soon to be dashed. There were severe allegations that he along with his brother-in-law Allu Arvind sold his party tickets to prospective contestants and netted nearly Rs 1500 crore in the process. After a poor showing in the elections, Chiru wound up his party after only a year in operation and merged it with the Congress in return for a Rajya Sabha seat and a Union cabinet berth.
There were again rumors that he merged his Party with the Congress for a certain amount. But the unkindest cut of all was when he refused to resign from his post of Union Minister or the Congress for the cause of ‘Samaikhyandhra’. Nowadays, he is conspicuous by his absence from the Rajya Sabha and also from major political events in the State. Needless to say, he has completely lost the confidence of the Telugu people. Industry sources say that Chiru is deeply hurt at the fall in his ‘brand value’ and wants to reclaim his past glory.
However, for that purpose he seems to be banking only on his 150th film and no longer on politics. In fact, one source says that Chiru is considering following the example of Amitabh Bachchan and restrict himself to movies only. Says one detractor of Chiru, tongue-in-cheek: “What does he need politics for anyway? He has already attained his targets and made his family wealthy for generations to come.”
.jpg)
