BRS makes debut in Andhra, ex-minister, officers join party

Chandrasekhar, a prominent Kapu leader, had entered politics in 2009 with Praja Rajyam Party floated by popular actor and former Union minister Chiranjeevi. He unsuccessfully contested the 2009 Lok Sabha elections from Guntur

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), a rename of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) headed by chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao, on Monday made a debut in the neighbouring Telugu state of Andhra Pradesh.

Retired IAS officer and Jana Sena leader Thota Chandrasekhar, former minister Ravela Kishore Babu and former IRS officer Chintala Parthsarathi, joined the BRS in the presence of KCR at Telangana Bhavan in Hyderabad. (ANI)

Several leaders from Andhra Pradesh, including retired IAS officer and Jana Sena leader Thota Chandrasekhar, former minister Ravela Kishore Babu and former Indian Revenue Service officer Chintala Parthsarathi, joined the BRS in the presence of KCR at Telangana Bhavan in Hyderabad.

Chandrasekhar, a prominent Kapu leader, had entered politics in 2009 with Praja Rajyam Party floated by popular actor and former Union minister Chiranjeevi. He unsuccessfully contested the 2009 Lok Sabha elections from Guntur.

Later, he joined the YSR Congress party and contested the Lok Sabha elections from Eluru in 2014 but lost the polls. Later, he joined the Jana Sena party floated by Chiranjeevi’s brother Pawan Kalyan and had been playing a key role in the party for the last eight years. He lost the 2019 assembly election again from Guntur (west).

After keeping away from active politics, Chandrasekhar has now joined the BRS and is likely to be appointed the Andhra Pradesh state wing president, party sources said.

Kishore Babu, who entered politics after quitting the Indian Revenue Service and joined the TDP, served as social welfare minister during the Chandrababu Naidu regime between 2014 and 2018. He later joined the Bharatiya Janata Party and served as a vice-president of AP unit from 2020 to 2022, but quit the party later.

Parthasarathi had unsuccessfully contested from the Anakapalle parliamentary constituency in 2019 on a Jana Sena ticket.

Former Praja Rajyam Party leader Thummalasetty Jaya Prakash Narayana from Anantapur also joined the BRS, along with others.