Veteran Bandaru or mass leader Kishan for Secunderabad

As the date for the announcement of BJP candidates inches closer, all eyes are on BJP’s stronghold Secunderabad parliamentary constituency.
BJP veteran Bandaru Dattatreya (File | PTI)
BJP veteran Bandaru Dattatreya (File | PTI)

HYDERABAD: As the date for the announcement of BJP candidates inches closer, all eyes are on BJP’s stronghold Secunderabad parliamentary constituency. Though sitting MP and former union minister Bandaru Dattatreya wants to seek re-election, there is uncertainty whether he would be renominated by the party. In this scenario, senior BJP leader and former MLA G Kishan Reddy has emerged as a strong contender for the party ticket.

Recently, Kishan Reddy announced his decision to contest in the upcoming polls. It fuelled the speculation that Reddy is keen in contesting from Secunderabad constituency. 
Reddy met Union minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi on Tuesday and the meeting is being seen as Reddy’s attempt to hard sell his name to pip Dattatreya for the party ticket. The BJP is set to announce its list on March 15. 

But what is set to dent the prospects of Dattreya, a veteran of the saffron party leader and a four-time MP?

It is learnt that the BJP top brass has allotted the BJP ticket to Dattatreya in 2014 with a precondition that he would not be given the ticket in the next elections (2019). 
Though State BJP president K Laxman refused to comment on this development, however, senior party leaders have admitted to this fact. But Laxman pointed out that “Kishan Reddy and Dattatreya are keen in contesting the Secunderabad seat.” 

Mass leader

The party has also relieved the leader of his ministerial berth -- minister of state (MoS) labour and employment -- in 2017 which raised many questions on the sudden decision. One of the questions that came to fore was the alleged role that Dattatreya played in University of Hyderabad (UoH) scholar Rohith Vemula’s death. In that incident, Dattatreya wrote a letter to Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani to oust Rohith Vemula and 4 other students. His performance in the Parliament too has not been that great considering the fact that Dattatreya is an MP for the fourth time. He asked just 12 questions in the Parliament, all of which in 2014. He moved no private bill during the five-year term.

However, other backward castes (OBC) tag can come in favour for the BJP top brass to consider his renomination for Secunderabad. But Kishan’s image of being a leader of the masses is no less insignificant. Reddy has been elected from Amberpet assembly constituency for three consecutive times. Recently, he unsuccessfully contested in the Assembly polls, losing by a slender margin of 1,000 votes.

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