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Sacked Telangana health minister Eatala Rajender all set to join BJP
TRS leader Eatala Rajender, who left for New Delhi on Sunday evening, met BJP national president JP Nadda on Monday night
Senior Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) lawmaker and former state health minister Eatala Rajender, who was sacked from the state cabinet on May 2 following allegations of land encroachments, is all set to join the Bharatiya Janata Party in a day or two, party leaders said.
Rajender, who left for New Delhi on Sunday evening, met BJP national president JP Nadda on Monday night along with state BJP president Bandi Sanjay and party in charge of Telangana affairs Tarun Chugh.
He held discussions with Nadda for over an hour over the recent developments in the state. “Rajender raised certain clarifications from the BJP chief and the latter assured him that he would get the due respect and recognition in the BJP. Nadda asked him to take an early decision on joining the party,” a senior BJP leader familiar with the development said.
Rajender reportedly expressed doubts over the possibility of the BJP adopting a soft corner towards the TRS, in the wake of TRS president and chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s friendly relations with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“However, Nadda told Rajender that the BJP would go all out against the TRS in the state as it had done in West Bengal. Our aim is to capture power in Telangana in the next elections and there is no doubt about it,” the BJP leader said.
Rajender is expected to return to Hyderabad on Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning and would announce his decision to join the BJP. Before that, he would resign from the primary membership of the TRS and also his assembly seat. Along with him, another senior leader and ex-MLA Enugu Ravinder Reddy, who also accompanied Rajender to Delhi, would join the BJP.
Rajender, who represents Huzurabad assembly constituency in northern Telangana, had been associated with the party since 2003 and held several positions including party floor leader in the assembly, besides being the first finance minister of Telangana state. During the second term of the TRS, Rajender was given the medical and health portfolio.
Though Rajender had been loyal to the party for the last 18 years, there had been reports of serious differences between him and the party leadership on several issues. On many occasions, he expressed his displeasure over the alleged humiliation meted out to him and other ministers by the chief minister.
The cold war between Rajender and the TRS leadership culminated in stripping of his medical and health portfolio on May 1, when reports of his alleged land grabbing in Medak district surfaced in a section of vernacular media. A day later, Rajender was sacked from the cabinet, following a report submitted by Medak collector confirming the allegations of land grabbing.
Rajender alleged that the TRS leadership unleashed a smear campaign against him and resorted to his character assassination. He said he was ready to face a probe even by a sitting judge or the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
In the last few weeks, Rajender met several leaders including Pradesh Congress Committee working president A Revanth Reddy and Congress Legislature Party floor leader Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, besides ex-MP Konda Vishweshwar Reddy and Telangana Jana Samithi leader M Kodandaram, seeking their support to his fight against the KCR government.
He also met state BJP president Bandi Sanjay, Union minister of state for home G Kishan Reddy and others to discuss his future course of action. Finally, he decided to join the BJP to continue his fight with the TRS.
