BM Sandeep named new Telangana AICC in-charge with immediate effect

Hyderabad: The Congress high command sprang a surprise on Saturday by appointing BM Sandeep as the new AICC in-charge of Telangana, replacing Meenakshi Natarajan. The appointment takes effect immediately. AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal issued a press release to this effect soon after the conclusion of the Bharat Summit in the city.

Meenakshi Natarajan has been in the news since June 2026 after her nomination to the Rajya Sabha was rejected by the Returning Officer in Madhya Pradesh. The rejection followed her failure to disclose a pending complaint against her before a private court.

The BJP subsequently alleged that information about the pending complaint had been leaked from within the Telangana Congress. The allegations triggered a controversy within the party.

TPCC president Mahesh Kumar Goud announced that an internal inquiry would be conducted into the matter. However, there has been no official update on the inquiry so far.

Since the controversy, Meenakshi Natarajan has maintained distance from Telangana Congress affairs. Although party leaders in the state maintained that she was pursuing higher education abroad, her absence from state party activities has remained evident.