MEDAK: Ever since Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao announced the list of BRS candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections, leaders who were denied the ticket and their followers have been raising a banner revolving against the party’s leadership.
The latest to join the bandwagon is Narsapur MLA Ch Madan Reddy’s supporters, who turned up in large numbers and staged a protest in front of Finance and Health Minister T Harish Rao’s residence in Hyderabad on Thursday
It may be mentioned here that the BRS leadership announced the candidates for nine out of 10 constituencies in the erstwhile Medak district. As it did not announce its candidate for the Narsapur segment, speculation was rife that the leadership was considering the name of State Women’s Commission chairperson V Sunitha Laxma Reddy.
A day after Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s visit to Medak, Madan Reddy’s followers, including ZPTCs, Mandal Parishad presidents, MPTCs, sarpanches and other BRS leaders from all mandals in the constituency reached Hyderabad, and staged a sit-in for over three hours in front of Harish Rao’s residence.
They demanded that their leader be given an opportunity to contest for the third consecutive time from Narsapur. Though Harish Rao promised to bring the issue to the notice of the chief minister, they said gave an ultimatum to the party to take a decision on Madan Reddy’s candidature in the next two days. They also threatened to “consider their future” if the party fails to heed their demand.
Meanwhile, Sunitha Laxma Reddy’s supporters claim that when she joined the BRS from the Congress, the Pink party leadership had promised to give her an opportunity to contest in the 2013 Assembly elections.