Hyderabad: Its now official. The BJP high command has decided to change the state BJP president Bandi Sanjay and replace him with G Kishan Reddy. Bandi would be inducted in the Union cabinet as Minister of State. An official announcement is likely to be made late in the night.
Meanwhile it is learnt that RSS has opposed the change. It wants that Bandi Sanjay should continue as president. According to sources, Bandi Sanjay will be returning to Hyderabad from Delhi on Tuesday. It is also learnt that Eatala Rajender would be chairman of campaign committee.
However, political circles here feel that this decision of the BJP gives a clear indication that the allegation made by Congress party that BRS is ‘B’ team of BJP would be confirmed. The allegation against Bandi was that he was behaving unilaterally and was not carrying everyone with him.
In fact, in the past Kishan Reddy had been the state president since the formation of Telangana and there were allegations that he has always been soft towards BRS. Speculations are also rife that after the Assembly elections, BRS may join NDA and this move of change in state leadership would pave the way for such developments in future.
Bandi Sanjay, it may be mentioned here is credited to have given a new life to BJP in Telangana. From a stage where the party was sulking, it was Bandi who took on the Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and created an impression that the fight in the ensuing Assembly elections would be between BRS and BJP while Congress would be at number three position. But after Karnataka results, the BJP went to sort of confused state and it now seems that it has decided to give up the fight in Telangana.
The saffron party sources felt that it should change Bandi and bring in Kishan Reddy so that in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, BJP would have at least three or four MPs from the state.
Kishan Reddy it may be recalled was the state president prior to Bandi taking over. He had been leading the party since formation of the state but the party did not create any major impact. Congress party has been alleging that Kishan Reddy was soft towards BRS.
The TPCC on Monday said that the latest developments have confirmed their allegations.
With this development, some leaders feel there is a possibility some senior leaders like Jithender Reddy, Raghunandan Rao, D K Aruna and others may consider switching over loyalties to Congress party.
