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Telangana BJP faces internal rift ahead of local body polls
The BJP in Telangana facing internal wrangling ahead of the elections to the local bodies in the state in September and to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) scheduled in December
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Telangana facing internal wrangling ahead of the elections to the local bodies in the state in September and to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) scheduled in December, party functionaries familiar with the development said.
At a time when 42% reservations for the other backward classes (OBCs) has become a big political issue in the local body elections, the appointment of an upper caste leader N Ramachander Rao as the Telangana state BJP president on July 1 has triggered discontent within the party.
At least three prominent OBC leaders – Malkajgiri MP Eatala Rajender, Nizamabad MP Dharmapuri Arvind and Goshamahal MLA T Raja Singh – were in the race for becoming the state BJP president, but the party high command chose Ramachander Rao, a relatively soft-spoken leader, for the post.
Raja Singh, who alleged that he was denied the opportunity to file his nomination on June 30, resigned from the party and the high command accepted his resignation within no time.
“Raja Singh is the lone BJP MLA from Hyderabad and his leadership is crucial for the party to win the GHMC elections. So, the way the BJP leadership treated him was humiliating and it has terribly upset the BJP cadre in Hyderabad. It will definitely have an impact on the party prospects in the GHMC polls,” a senior BJP leader, who refused to be quoted, said.
In fact, Nizamabad MP Dharmapuri Arvind, too, expressed his dissatisfaction over the way Raja Singh issue was handled. “All said and done, Raja Singh was an ideological icon for the BJP. But he was upset with the party on certain issues and quit the party. I am sure the party will take him back. It is a question of just one telephonic call,” Arvind told reporters in New Delhi on Wednesday.
On the other hand, Eatala Rajender, who was the front runner for the state BJP president post, was upset not only for being denied the opportunity, but also for being sidelined in the party, particularly in erstwhile combined Karimnagar district, which he had dominated when he was in the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) in the past.
According to the party leader quoted above, Rajender has been facing troubles from Union minister of state for home Bandi Sanjay, who represents Karimnagar parliamentary constituency. “Obviously, Sanjay doesn’t want Rajender to wield influence on the party in Karimnagar, as the latter is a relatively new comer to the BJP – he had joined the BJP in June, 2021,” he said.
At a programme held in Huzurabad assembly constituency last week, Sanjay made an indirect attack on Rajender, who had earlier represented the constituency in the past. He said the party would not encourage leaders who worked for their individual domination, but only those who were loyal to the party.
“Why has groupism developed in Huzurabad when such divisions are not seen elsewhere in the state?” he said, adding that such indiscipline will not be tolerated in the party.
Within hours of Sanjay’s comments, BJP Huzurabad constituency convener Mada Goutham Reddy, a close follower of Rajender, resigned from the party’s primary membership. “None of Rajender’s followers was invited for Sanjay’s programme in Huzurabad,” he alleged.
The next day, Rajender’s followers came to his residence in Hyderabad and brought pressure on him to decide his future course of action. He tried to convince them saying he would fight it out and get justice for them.
Speaking to his followers, Rajender alleged that during the previous Huzurabad assembly election, several people conspired to defeat him. He said that insults and humiliation are part of politics, and he endured them.
“I only believe in a straight fight, not a street fight. I cannot engage in double standards or backstabbing politics. I fight my enemies head-on. I have a history of fighting for a separate Telangana state,” he said.
Without taking the name of Bandi Sanjay, Eatala said some leaders in politics are living on foundations of lies. “I only know how to work sincerely for the party. Time will prove everything. A brave person never backs down and knows the limits of patience,” he said.
He clarified that whichever party he was in, I would work with dedication. “I don’t need anyone’s mercy. Not just in politics — covert players exist everywhere. We should ignore them,” he added.
On the ongoing cold war between Rajender and Sanjay, Dharmapuri Arvind said the party should resolve the dispute at the earliest in the best interest of the party. “The BJP leadership should constitute a neutral committee to look into the disputes between the two MPs. Newly-appointed state BJP president Ramachander Rao should take the initiative in this regard. If necessary, he should seek the intervention of party national leadership,” Arvind said.
