Hyderabad: The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), known for its aggressive recruitment of legislators from various parties during its two terms since 2014, is now facing a wave of defections in Telangana.
BRS leaders have approached assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar seeking the disqualification of MLAs defecting, under the anti-defection law.
The ruling Congress has criticised the move, highlighting “the BRS’ moral bankruptcy of having engineered defections of 39 Opposition MLAs — from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the Congress, the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP), the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) the Communist Party of India (CPI) as well as Independents — during its rule”.
Notably, the number of seats the BRS won in the November assembly elections matched the number of defectors (39) who joined the party over its last two terms. However, in the past four weeks, the party has seen three of its newly-elected MLAs switch allegiance to the Congress.
This shift followed an announcement by chief minister and Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee or (TPCC) chief Revanth Reddy in mid-March, declaring that the Telangana Congress is welcoming leaders from other parties, including MLAs.
Since February, two months after its electoral defeat in early December, the BRS has lost five of its eight Lok Sabha MPs to the Congress (3) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (2), with the Medak seat becoming vacant after a BRS MP was elected to the assembly.
These are some of the prominent figures who have joined the Congress ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Polling in the state will be held on 13 May.
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Keshava Rao
The former Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) chief, K. Keshava Rao, shifted his allegiance back to the Congress in the last week of March. Rao, the BRS Rajya Sabha MP, was the party’s secretary general and K. Chandrashekar Rao’s (KCR’s) adviser on national affairs.
His daughter and Hyderabad mayor Gadwal Vijayalaxmi also joined the Congress in the presence of CM Revanth Reddy and AICC Telangana in-charge Deepa Dasmunsi on 30 March.
While Rao has not got any ticket and his defection may not yield significant electoral benefits, his switch bolsters Revanth Reddy’s narrative of a weakening BRS, which he (Revanth) claimed is “a sinking ship”, and could prompt further defections. Vijayalaxmi’s move will potentially help increase the Congress’s vote share in the Hyderabad capital area.
Kadiyam Srihari
A former deputy chief minister and sitting Station Ghanpur MLA, Kadiyam Srihari, who was earlier with the TDP, along with his daughter and BRS nominee for the Warangal Lok Sabha seat, Kadiyam Kavya, joined the Congress on 24 March.
Kavya is now the Congress candidate for the same seat.
Srihari, who is from the Schedule Caste community, has some hold in the constituency (Warangal Lok Sabha), which could boost the Congress’s prospects. However, the leader is facing resistance from some local leaders.
Danam Nagender
Danam Nagender, the Khairatabad MLA, rejoined the Congress on 17 March. A former Congressman and a senior MLA, he also served as a minister in the Congress governments of united Andhra Pradesh.
Nagender is now the Congress candidate for the Secunderabad Lok Sabha seat, challenging Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy.
Nagender, who belongs to an Other Backward Classes (OBC) community, has considerable influence in some pockets of Hyderabad, a region where the Congress fared badly in the assembly polls. His entry is expected to help the party in the city.
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Ranjith Reddy
A businessman-turned-politician, Ranjith Reddy, the sitting Chevella BRS MP, joined the Congress along with Danam Nagender on 17 March.
Reddy was slated to be renominated as the BRS candidate from Chevella — a segment adjoining Hyderabad with a mix of IT companies, high-end residential communities as well as rural areas.
He is now the Congress candidate from Chevella facing former BRS MP and the BJP candidate, Konda Vishweshwar Reddy.
A victory for either the Congress or BJP in the Chevella seat indicates a decline in BRS’s stronghold.
Patnam Suneetha Mahender Reddy
The BRS Vikarabad Zilla Parishad chairperson, Suneetha Reddy, wife of BRS MLC Patnam Mahender Reddy, joined the Congress in February in the presence of her husband and AICC Telangana in-charge Deepa Dasmunshi.
Patnam Mahender Reddy, sitting MLC and a former minister in the BRS government, is himself moving in the Congress circles, attending meetings, and playing an active role in strengthening the party by bringing in more leaders.
Suneetha Reddy is the Congress candidate from the Malkajgiri Lok Sabha seat.
The Congress wants to retain the Malkajgiri seat, one of the Lok Sabha segments in Hyderabad which elected Revanth Reddy in 2019. Patnam Mahender Reddy could help steer a victory by shoring up leaders and votes of the BRS.
Tellam Venkat Rao
In one of the latest defections, the lone BRS Bhadrachalam MLA from the Khammam region, Tellam Venkat Rao, joined the Congress on 7 April in the presence of CM Revanth Reddy.
Rao, however, has not been given any ticket. His addition to the Congress gives the party total domination in Khammam, an area adjoining Andhra Pradesh. The party is yet to announce its candidate here.
Venkatesh Netha
The BRS Peddapalli MP, Venkatesh Netha, who was with the Congress earlier, rejoined the party in February. He, however, has not got the party ticket.
Some reports claimed that Netha is likely to join the BJP and will be its Peddapalli candidate.
Pasunoori Dayakar
A two-time BRS Warangal MP, Pasunoori Dayakar joined the Congress in March. Despite his move, he has not been allocated an electoral ticket.
Taking in the two sitting MPs (Pasunoori Dayakar and Venkatesh Netha) unhappy with BRS leadership denying them tickets, the Congress wants to strengthen its prospects in the Peddapalli and Warangal seats.
Meanwhile, two other BRS MPs — Pothuganti Ramulu and B.B. Patil — have defected to the BJP between February and March. Patil has been named the BJP’s candidate for his current constituency, Zaheerabad, while Pothuganti Bharat Prasad, the son of MP Ramulu, has been nominated by the BJP to contest from his father’s constituency, Nagarkurnool.
(Edited by Richa Mishra)
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