Etala, Rajgopal Hold No-Holds-Barred Talks with Shah, Nadda

Hyderabad: The BJP’s ‘Operation Placate’, to calm ruffled feathers in the party’s Telangana unit on Saturday saw Union home minister Amit Shah and party president J.P. Nadda sit down in New Delhi with state party leaders Etala Rajendar and Komatireddy Rajgopal Reddy for a no-holds-barred discussion.

Also present was Union minister G. Kishan Reddy, who was summoned urgently to join the meeting while he was taking part in the BJP’s Maha Jan Sampark Abhiyan.

Rajendar and Rajgopal have been seeking a larger role in the party, and making their views clear on how the party was being run. Of late, Rajgopal Reddy had been airing his views publicly on how there was an increasing perception in the state that the Centre was not taking any action on corruption by the BRS government.

During Saturday’s meeting, the two leaders are learnt to have made it clear that if the Centre stayed silent on corruption in Telangana, then it would be difficult for the BJP to survive, let alone get stronger to take on the BRS government.

One of the issues that have been rankling the party leaders is what they believe has become the ‘burden’ of the ED not taking any action on BRS MLC K. Kavitha in the Delhi liquor scam, with the Congress using this as a stick to beat the BJP with.

After the meeting, Rajendar and Rajgopal Reddy, in a brief chat with reporters, said they apprised Nadda and Shah on the state of affairs in the party, and the political situation. Rajgopal Reddy described it as a meeting where they “spoke without any reservations,” while Rajendar said Shah and Nadda “inquired about the political situation in the state, and how to go forward to make the BJP stronger in the state, and listened to our suggestions.”

Rajendar said: “We told them that the Central leadership should focus more on making the party strong in Telangana, and take it forward.”

Rajgopal Reddy said that although there were delays that led to Saturday’s meeting, “some decisions that need to be taken in Telangana were discussed, along with what needs to be done immediately,” adding that “we spoke freely, without holding back. People have been waiting for a long time to dethrone the BRS government and we told them what steps should be taken to make this happen.”

Rajgopal Reddy said: “They know everything; our responsibility was to inform them what we believe. We urged them to take some decisions immediately. People have faith in Modi, Shah, and Nadda, but doubts have to be removed, so decisions must be taken quickly, we told them.”

He said Shah and Nadda had responded positively. “We have full confidence that the central leadership will take good decisions to strengthen the party so BJP can form the next government in the state.”

On Minister K.T. Rama Rao's meeting with Shah and other Union ministers, Rajgopal Reddy said these are regular meetings between state leaders and Central ministers, and no political motive or conspiracy theory should be attributed to such meetings.