HYDERABAD: BJP leader and former minister Eatala Rajender appears to be at the crossroads of his political career. According to sources, the saffron party is asking him to contest from Medak in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls but he prefers Karimnagar and if that is not possible, he wants to be fielded from Malakjgiri.
The party is reportedly trying to convey to him that it cannot field him from Karimnagar as Bandi Sanjay Kumar has to be accommodated there and in Malakjgiri, party senior leader P Muralidhar Rao has thrown his hat in the ring. The former minister’s supporters are requesting him to contest from Karimnagar as he hails from Huzurabad which is part of the Karimnagar Lok Sabha constituency.
The party is categorical that Eatala should contest from Medak to make way for Bandi Sanjay in Karimnagar and Muralidhar Rao in Malkajgiri. The leadership has reportedly pointed out to Eatala that Gajwel, from where he contested against KCR in the recent Assembly election, is part of the Medak LS constituency.
‘Fake news being spread’
The BJP leaders believe that if Eatala contests from Medak, he would be able to give a tough fight even to KCR if he chooses to contest for Lok Sabha from there. As Eatala belongs to the BC community, the party thinks he is the right horse to bet on.
But Eatala wants either Karimnagar or Malakjgiri and if neither is offered, he wants to stay away from the Lok Sabha polls. The BC leader is averse to contesting from Medak, since, in the Assembly elections, the BRS held sway, winning six of the seven segments in the Lok Sabha constituency. His supporters say that he is not prepared for another defeat after losing the Assembly elections from both Gajwel and Huzurabad.
Eatala’s supporters suspect some forces in the party are creating a difficult situation for Eatala so that he would exit the party. They said these elements were spreading fake news that Eatala was going to resign and join the Congress to contest from Karimnagar.
Reacting sharply to the speculation on his political future, Eatala dismissed them as baseless and said he was ready to contest from any constituency by the party’s direction. He described as fake the news that he was switching his loyalty to the Congress.