Hyderabad: The irrepressible T. Raja Singh, the three-time BJP MLA from Goshamahal, has just queered the pitch for the party saying that he is willing to contest the coming Lok Sabha elections from Secunderabad constituency if his party wishes to press him into service for the general elections.
In a tongue firmly his cheek reaction to what Raja Singh said is an attempt by some in the party to float his name as the prospective candidate from the Hyderabad constituency, the BJP MLA on Monday said the party, if keen on winning Hyderabad, should first focus on getting rid of the nearly 4 lakh bogus votes in the constituency. “Kishan Reddy should focus on this if the BJP wants to win from Hyderabad,” Raja Singh said.
“If the party directs me to do so, I am willing to contest from the Secunderabad constituency,” Raja Singh told Deccan Chronicle, following his releasing a brief statement on the matter on Monday.
The only problem with this plan for the BJP is that Secunderabad is currently represented by the state BJP president and Union minister G. Kishan Reddy, who expects to contest from the constituency again in the coming Lok Sabha elections.
Raja Singh’s comment is expected to be no more than a pin prick in the overall scheme of things for Kishan Reddy, but it creates a perception problem for him and points to the fairly fragile peace that the Telangana unit of the BJP is managing to hang on to ever since the change of leadership which saw Bandi Sanjay Kumar removed as the state party chief with Kishan Reddy replacing him in the run up to last year’s Assembly elections.
It also comes at a time when Kishan Reddy is expected to face a challenge from former Hyderabad mayor Bonthu Rammohan, who quit the BRS to join the Congress and is learnt to be keen on contesting from Secunderabad as the Congress candidate.
Rammohan told Deccan Chronicle that he stands a strong chance of winning given the community equations in the constituency and the strong presence of minorities who constitute around 35 per cent of all voters in Secunderabad.
“Another aspect is that Kishan Reddy, being a Union Minister, got distanced from the people, and the BRS is expected to field Talasani Srinivas Yadav again who is sure to lose. All of these make me a strong choice for the Congress,” he said.
