With local body elections approaching in Telangana, political defections have begun to pick up pace. Former Achampet MLA Guvvala Balaraju from the undivided Mahbubnagar district has already resigned from the BRS and is set to join the BJP. On Friday, he met BJP state president Ram Chander Rao at the party office to formalise the move.
During the meeting, Ram Chander Rao made a striking claim that five sitting BRS MLAs are preparing to join the BJP. He added that the dates of their formal entry would be announced soon.
Another former BRS MLA, Abraham from Alampur, has also resigned and is ready to join the BJP. Both leaders come from the Dalit community. However, political observers are curious to know which sitting MLAs would take the bold step of quitting the BRS to join the BJP.
According to sources, Ram Chander Rao’s remarks have created unease within the BRS camp. Already struggling with multiple controversies, the party now faces the possibility of further erosion in its ranks. For the leadership, the thought of MLAs leaving ahead of elections is bound to cause serious concern.
Ram Chander Rao did not stop at just that revelation. He went on to claim that many leaders in BRS are feeling suffocated and unable to continue in the party. He declared that the BRS has no future and that leaders are realising this and moving on.
Balaraju is expected to formally join the BJP on the 10th of this month. Rao stressed that this is only the beginning and that before the local body polls, many more leaders will join in numbers too big to predict.
Whether his claims hold true remains to be seen but they have clearly stirred up the BRS and energised BJP ranks. If several BRS leaders do switch sides before the polls, the BJP could significantly boost its local presence, possibly even securing an unprecedented number of local bodies regardless of whether Congress retains its majority at the state level.
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