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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) no more seems to be emerging as an option for defectors who are changing sides in the run up to the Telangana state elections. Leaders from both the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the main opposition Congress are moving between both sides primarily, indicating that the promise BJP once showed as a growing power in the state seems to have been stymied for now.
In fact, so far not even one unhappy leader from the BRS has joined or announced that they will join the BJP after the ruling party released its list of candidates for the state elections earlier this month. Sitting BRS Khanapur MLA Rekha Naik applied for a Congress ticket a day after her party dropped her from its list of 114 candidates announced for 115 Assembly seats.
Apart from BRS supremo and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) contesting from two seats - Gajwel (current) and Kamareddy - the BRS changed only nine names in its list. Even among other unhappy leaders who were expecting tickets, political observers said that they are expecting people to only move towards the Congress.
A day earlier on Monday, July 28, Telangana Health Minister T Harish Rao oversaw the joining of Congress leader Rangineni Abhilash Rao in Hyderabad. Prior to that, Congress Yadadri District Committee head Anil Kumar Yadav also quit and joined the BRS in July. Such defections have been going on over recent months as well.
Two of the biggest moves however have been from the BRS to the Congress. Ex-MP Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy and ex-minister Jupally Krishna Rao leaving for the grand old party has given it a boost in the run up to the elections. The BJP was also reportedly holding discussions to bring both of them to its side but it failed.
One of the reasons behind BJP being lackluster is also attributed to the leadership issues it faced until a little over a month ago. Secunderabad MP G Kishan Reddy was appointed as the state party chief after severe infighting as a section of leaders within the BJP were unhappy with Karimnagar MP Bandi Sanjay Kumar, who was eventually replaced by the party high command.
Bandi Sanjay was opposed by leaders including Huzurabad MLA Eatala Rajender, who himself was looking to take over as the BJP president. However he was finally made the Chairman of the State Election Management Committee. Rajender is also incharge of overseeing new joinings, and some BJP leaders have pointed fingers at him
"As of now we have no joinings or any leaders to announce about. But we are talking to people," said a BJP leader from Hyderabad. He added that the party is also focusing on its list of candidates for the polls. Another BJP leader from Telangana said that they were in touch with 13 big names from the Congress and BRS, and added that things will take time to move.
"The BJP has lost the perception that it is emerging as a strong force. That's why it has lost steam and is now still third. Eatala Rajender saying that he failed to bring Ponguleti and Jupally, and the infighting which led to Bandi Sanjay's removal as party chief has all contributed to this. The Congress still is in the main opposition space, but it is to be seen if it can beat the BRS," said political analyst Palwai Raghavendra Reddy.
