HYDERABAD: Even after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention, the cold war within the Telangana BJP shows no signs of abating.
Party cadre are openly discussing the turf war for dominance between Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar and Malkajgiri MP Eatala Rajender, particularly in Karimnagar district.
According to party sources, both leaders have been making snide, indirect remarks against each other during the recent sarpanch elections in the Huzurabad Assembly constituency.
Leaders within the party believe that during the gram panchayat polls, both camps encouraged their supporters to file nominations and actively campaigned for their respective candidates.
Huzurabad was Rajender’s earlier Assembly constituency, from where he was elected as an MLA and served as a minister in the K Chandrasekhar Rao Cabinet. Although he is now an MP from Malkajgiri, he is keen on safeguarding his cadre and leaders in his home turf of Huzurabad, many of whom joined the BJP from the BRS when he switched to the saffron party.
On the other hand, Bandi Sanjay is also asserting his claim, maintaining that the candidates who contested are loyal party workers aligned with him. Huzurabad happens to be part of his Karimnagar Lok Sabha constituency.
Appointment of BJP district unit presidents
Meanwhile, both camps are reportedly trying to gain the upper hand in the appointment of BJP district unit presidents in districts falling under the Karimnagar and Malkajgiri Lok Sabha constituencies.
While the party has appointed presidents for most districts, appointments in Karimnagar and Medchal-Malkajgiri districts remain pending, allegedly due to intense lobbying by both leaders for their nominees. Sources said that state-level office-bearers are backing senior leader and party old-timer Sanjay’s supporters, while Rajender’s camp is firmly pushing its candidates. As a result, no decision has been taken so far regarding these two districts.
Senior party leaders warned that the ongoing factionalism in Karimnagar could seriously dent the BJP’s prospects in the upcoming MPTC and ZPTC elections. They also expressed concern over the apparent lack of urgency shown by the state leadership, party in-charges and organisational secretaries in resolving the simmering dispute.