BJP State president post: Etala faces opposition from within party

It is learnt that several senior leaders are strongly opposing Rajender being made the State unit chief.

Hyderabad: Opposition is building up against the candidature of the newly-elected MP from the Malkajgiri constituency Etala Rajender for the post of the party’s State president, with several leaders from the State opposing the party leadership’s effort to hand over the reins of the State unit to him.

Sources in the party say the party leadership was in favour of handing over the post to Rajender as it believed that the MP with his long experience would help the party in strengthening the party in the State. It is learnt that union Home Minister Amit Shah was backing Rajender.

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However, the decision of the party leadership was reportedly being opposed by several leaders, including union Minister of State for Home Bandi Sanjay and Nizamabad MP Dharmapuri Arvind.

Sanjay, who lost the State unit chief post allegedly because of Rajender last year, was allegedly making all out efforts to keep the Malkajgiri MP away from the post. He was reportedly using all his connections in the central leadership to reject Rajender’s candidature.

Sanjay was said to be projecting Rajender as an outsider to deny him the party president’s post. Even Arvind, who has strained relations with Rajender ever since he joined the party, too is reportedly opposing the decision of the party leadership to hand over the reins of the party State unit to him.

It is learnt that several senior leaders are strongly opposing Rajender being made the State unit chief.

In fact, many of them have reportedly put forward their views to central leaders. Sources say since Rajender has no ideological background of the BJP, it would be very difficult for the party cadres to accept him. It is a known fact that Rajender has a leftist background and this may come as a hurdle for him to get the coveted post, they say.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that few senior leaders, including Mahabubnagar MP DK Aruna, former national general secretary P Muralidhar Rao, former MLA NVSS Prabhakar, former MLC N Ramchandra Rao and senior dalit leader Chintha Sambamurthy, are lobbying for the post.