BJP contemplates risky strategy to challenge Telangana’s key BRS leaders in upcoming Assembly elections
Challenging other Ministers and senior MLAs from the BRS party is also seen as a formidable task for the BJP, which has limited presence in most constituencies.
Hyderabad: There is a sharp division of opinion among the BJP leadership on the party’s strategy to pit the senior party leaders against the prominent BRS leaders including Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao and his cabinet colleagues. Many State BJP leaders believe that such a move could potentially harm the party’s prospects in the upcoming Assembly elections.
Party sources say the BJP’s central leadership was planning to field Huzurabad MLA and BJP election management committee chairman, Eatala Rajender, against the BRS supremo K Chandrashekhar Rao, who is seeking re-election from Gajwel. Similarly, Nizamabad MP Arvind Dharmapuri is likely to be fielded in Kamareddy, another constituency where the Chief Minister plans to contest.
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Karimnagar MP Bandi Sanjay is likely to challenge the sitting BRS MLA and IT Minister KT Rama Rao in Sircilla. Additionally, BJP national general secretary P Muralidhar Rao may contest against Finance Minister T Harish Rao in Siddipet. Other matchups include former Minister and party national vice president DK Aruna against Excise Minister V Srinivas Goud in Mahabubnagar assembly constituency and former MP Konda Visveshwar Reddy against P Sabita Indra Reddy in Maheshwaram.
Former MP AP Jitender Reddy is expected to face Agriculture Minister Singireddy Niranjan Reddy in Wanaparthy, while former MLA Gujjula Ramakrishna Reddy may challenge Gangula Kamalakar in Karimnagar. Lastly, former MLA Maheshwar Reddy could take on Forest Minister A Indrakaran Reddy in Nirmal.
The BJP leadership has reportedly assured these candidates that if they failed to win, they will have the opportunity to contest in the Lok Sabha elections. However, many State BJP leaders are skeptical about taking on Chief Minister KCR and his cabinet colleagues, especially Rama Rao and Harish Rao. They argue that this would be a difficult and potentially self-destructive task given the strong support these leaders enjoy in their respective constituencies.
Some BJP leaders express doubts about the feasibility of Eatala Rajender contesting against the Chief Minister in Gajwel, considering Eatala’s long-standing representation of Huzurabad assembly constituency. Similarly, they believe that Arvind contesting in Kamareddy is unlikely to yield victory against the Chief Minister.
Challenging other Ministers and senior MLAs from the BRS party is also seen as a formidable task for the BJP, which has limited presence in most constituencies. In the 2018 elections, the BJP failed to secure deposits in a majority of the assembly constituencies and only won the Goshamahal seat. Given the current state of poll preparedness, a similar outcome to the 2018 elections is anticipated.
