Telangana Rashtra Samithi leaders fear BJP poaching its MLAs

Hyderabad: The BJP state leadership’s claim that TRS MLAs are in touch with them has created a buzz in the ruling party’s ranks. BJP leaders claim that there would be major political developments in the state after the municipal polls.

Union minister of state for home G. Kishan Reddy, BJP TS president Dr K. Laxman and senior leaders including former minister Bandaru Dattatreya and general secretary, Mr Muralidhar Rao had declared from pubic platforms that several TRS MPs and MLAs were in touch with the BJP leadership and they were likely to join the party.

After the Lok Sabha poll results, BJP leaders have not missed an opportunity to state that TRS MPs and MLAs were feeling suffocated in the party as they were not able to get any opportunity to put forth their opinions before the leadership.

With this continuous propaganda, some senior TRS leaders have been psyched up enough to believe that the BJP would poack the ruling party MLAs.

TRS senior leaders admit privately that they were not able to say whether the BJP was really doing some work to lure MPs and MLAs or it was part of their mindgames. They feared that the BJP was adopting the Karnataka model of destabilising the TRS government, though the TRS here has a huge majority and the BJP has just one legislator.

Some TRS leaders were curious on whether the BJP was planning to dethrone the ruling party or split and take away a batch of MLAs to embarrass the TRS leadership. The role of the Speaker in either scenario would be crucial.

A senior leader of the TRS on condition of anonymity disclosed that they also had  indications that BJP senior leaders at Delhi were in contact with the MLAs.
Congress MPs also in their private talks said they had heard that the BJP leaders were in constant touch with the TRS MPs and MLAs as well as some Congress leaders.

They said that that during voting on the Triple Talaq Bill, abrogation of Article 370 and the Dam Safety Bill in Parliament, certain senior leaders of the BJP came in contact with TRS MPs in Delhi.

They told the MPs that the BJP high command was seriously preparing the ground to strengthen the party in Telangana state and that it had a clear vision on consolidating its position in the state.

BJP chief Amit Shah, during his recent visit to the city, announced Mission 2023 which is aimed at bringing the party to power in the next elections. After the announcement from the BJP chief, the state leadership intensified its attack on the TRS and its ally MIM and have been using every opportunity to create a rift between the parties which would help in polarising the majority vote.

BJP state leaders are preparing the ground to win a majority of the municipalities to nudge the TRS politicians towards the BJP.