A week after the announcement of its candidate list for 115/119 Assembly constituencies by the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), the unsuccessful contenders of party tickets in several constituencies appear to be adopting a wait-and-watch approach and nursing hopes that they still stand a chance in the form of changes.
“The fact that there’s no hasty decision-making by several aspirants who failed to make it to the list is an indication that the party leadership is engaged in assuaging the hurt feelings of such leaders by employing different tactics at its disposal,” a senior leader, who is tasked to pacify some unsuccessful aspirants approaching him unable to meet other key leaders, said.
Of the four constituencies to which candidates are yet to be named, only two are important from the point of view of its prospects, Jangaon and Narsapur, where the party leadership has to make a choice between the sitting legislators and a couple of other aspirants – one for Narsapur and two for Jangaon.
The party has a different problem in case of the Malkajigiri constituency for which it has retained sitting MLA Mynampalli Hanumantha Rao. He has made his position complicated with his outbursts against Minister T. Harish Rao by linking them to his demand for ticket to his son M. Rohith for Medak constituency, which Mr. Hanumantha Rao held from 2009-14 as Telugu Desam Party (TDP) candidate.
He has decided to bide time for a week in the name of meeting his constituents before charting his course of action. Party insiders term his position as the “one caught between the devil and the deep sea” as he had made an open challenge of sailing with BRS only if he and his son get tickets and is not sure of his demand getting fulfilled in Congress. The party leadership is ready with alternative plans
Another senior leader Tummala Nageshwara Rao, who was a contender for Palair ticket, is also unable to make a decision on joining another party in haste as the BRS leadership has retained sitting MLA K. Upender Reddy, who switched over from Congress after the 2018 elections. In Congress, Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy has applied for the Palair ticket recently.
Sitting MLA from Station Ghanpur T. Rajaiah, who is denied a ticket this time in favour of MLC Kadiyam Srihari, is still hopeful as he told his supporters that he would get the party nod eventually as he has faith in the party chief. “How can I leave the farm field with crop in the harvesting stage after putting in all the hard work to someone who is claiming that he too has helped in watering the crop,” Dr. Rajaiah said.
There are over a dozen more constituencies where the unsuccessful aspirants are still making efforts to get the list of candidates changed.
