Konda Surekha withdraws remarks as KTR defamation case continues

Konda Surekha has withdrawn earlier personal remarks against BRS working president K. T. Rama Rao, calling them “unsubstantiated” and expressing regret. The Congress MLA did so while a criminal-defamation case filed by KTR remained pending. Politics, apparently, is a place where evidence is optional until a court file starts moving.

In an October 29 post on X, Surekha said she had made the remarks while criticising the Opposition in the political circumstances of the time. She said she had no intention of hurting KTR or his family and added: “If my remarks have hurt them or their family members, I regret that and hereby withdraw those remarks.” She did not say the allegations were true but retractable; she described them as unsupported.

KTR’s complaint was filed in October 2024, and a magistrate took cognisance of it in August 2025, according to court-related reporting. KTR later said, “The truth is slowly coming out. Many people made false allegations against us. Many more are ready to apologise.” However, reporting also said he had not yet examined Surekha’s post and would consult his legal team. Whether he intends to continue the case remains unknown.

The available record does not show that a court compelled Surekha’s statement, recorded it as a settlement or ended KTR’s case. The withdrawal is documented; its legal consequence is not. The Congress government in Telangana has not publicly explained whether it accepts responsibility for a minister using personal allegations as political ammunition and then withdrawing them. A government that treats accusation as a campaign tool and accountability as an afterthought is not displaying political courage. It is displaying the usual thing: power without discipline.