HYDERABAD: With votes in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections now cast, the Telangana unit of the BJP is hoping that the leadership, especially BJP state president G Kishan Reddy, turns its focus to several internal challenges that are plaguing the party.
Of late, BJP leaders have been divided over several key issues, including the demolition of illegal constructions in catchment areas of water bodies within the ORR and the eviction of people living in illegal structures on the Musi riverbed.
While some BJP MPs have openly praised Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s decision to proceed with the demolitions, others have been critical, arguing that affected residents were not given sufficient time to vacate or be relocated.
This divide has led to confusion regarding the party’s stance on the issue, particularly regarding the Musi catchment area demolitions.
Ironically, the participation of several BJP MLAs, an MLC and MPs in the Rythu Sadhana Deeksha, a 24-hour hunger strike, further exposed rifts within the party since Kishan was reportedly unaware of the protest, as he was busy with election duties in J&K.
This has exposed the lack of communication within the party and highlighted the growing disconnect between the leadership, general secretaries and elected representatives.
The BJP - which has been trying to position itself as the main Opposition party in Telangana - is lagging behind the BRS in effectively raising public issues such as loan waiver implementation, flood relief and the controversial demolitions in Musi. The BRS has capitalised on these matters, launching strong attacks against the ruling Congress while the BJP has struggled to maintain a comparable level of aggression.
BJP sources attribute these issues to a lack of clarity from the high command regarding the tenure of the state unit president.
The uncertainty has led to factionalism, with some leaders distancing themselves from Kishan, while others are engaging in self-promotion. Complaints have reportedly been made to the central leadership, accusing certain MLAs and MPs of focusing on personal agendas rather than the party’s collective goals.
While the infighting remains largely behind closed doors, insiders say that tensions are steadily increasing, creating unease among party workers and full-time activists.
Senior leaders have expressed concern that the ongoing factionalism could harm the BJP’s prospects in the upcoming local body elections. They are calling for greater coordination among the party’s leadership to resolve the internal conflicts and refocus on building momentum ahead of future electoral battles.
FALSE PROMISES NOW SYNONYMOUS WITH CONG: KISHAN
Alleging that false promises and jugglery of words and figures have become the norm of the Congress administration, BJP state president G Kishan Reddy on Monday accused the state government of failing to stand by the farmers. Responding to Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on crop loan waiver, Kishan cited the Congress’s Rythu Declaration unveiled in Warangal that said the grand old party would waive farm loans completely in one go as soon as it took office.
“After 224 days of coming to power, the Congress waived only 50% of the crop loans,” Kishan alleged. “On August 26, you stated that `31,000 crore had been waived in the eight months since forming the government. Yesterday, you wrote to the PM, claiming that the Congress government in Telangana waived Rs 17,000+ crore.
Where did the remaining Rs 14,000 crore go? And there are still over 16 lakh farmers left out. How much longer will farmers have to wait for the promised relief?” Kishan asked the chief minister. “Shifting goalposts has been another characteristic of Congress promises. From saying that every farmer would be eligible for crop loan waiver of up to Rs 2 lakh to now limiting the benefit to one farmer per family.
Making false promises to farmers and not delivering on them is a failed guarantee,” Kishan said. He demanded that the state government reveal details of how many farmers obtained farm loans, how many of them had borrowed up to Rs 2 lakh and how many got the crop loan waiver.