Parties tracking 'coverts' in Nagarjunasagar by-poll

HYDERABAD: Political parties are deeply worried about “saboteurs” ahead of polling in the Nagarjunasagar Assembly byelection on April 17.

All parties are keeping a close watch on movements of disgruntled leaders, suspecting them of resorting to covert activities and sabotaging their party's prospects in the bypoll.

Earlier, the respective party leaderships had made all efforts to convince these disgruntled leaders into withdrawing from race in favour of the party's official candidates by offering them different posts. Still, there are fears that they may resort to covert activities and help rival parties.

While the ruling party has engaged the services of the intelligence department sleuths to keep a tab on such leaders, the opposition parties are relying on their close aides to track the saboteurs and submit daily reports on their activities.

There had been multiple serious contenders for party tickets to contest the bypoll, especially from the ruling TRS and the BJP. Though there were no contenders in Congress other than K. Jana Reddy, the Congress too is wary of coverts, as the ruling party has lured several prominent Congress leaders from village to district level into its fold over the past three months in presence of ministers, TRS MLAs, MLCs and so on.

The Congress is worried that several of such leaders, though continuing to remain in the party, have been in touch with TRS leaders and sabotaging party's prospects by “leaking” the party's strategy.

Congress suspects that seizure of liquor worth nearly RS 40 lakh on Friday from the residence of a local party leader known to be the close aide of Jana Reddy in Nagarjunasagar is handiwork of “coverts”. Congress leaders argue that though all parties are distributing cash and liquor in the bypoll, a few coverts had leaked information to ruling party leaders, who ordered police raids and seized stocks.

The Congress has now demanded that police raid residences of key leaders belonging to all parties if they are really sincere in curbing distribution of cash and liquor.

TRS leadership is worried that a few leaders from the Reddy community in the constituency are angry with the party for giving ticket to Yadava community. Thus, they are silently working for Jana Reddy on “caste grounds”, besides keeping away from campaigning for the party to register their dissent.

In the BJP, too, there had been many aspirants from the Reddy and BC communities. The party gave ticket to an ST candidate, leading to resentment among other communities. The party too is thus tracking movements of its disgruntled leaders.