HYDERABAD: “It is time to either sink or swim in Telangana.” With this battle cry, Bandi Sanjay Kumar, who on Friday took charge as general secretary of the BJP, practically relaunched his party’s election campaign in Telangana, declaring that this is a war that the BJP must, and will, win.
Sanjay, the BJP MP from Karimnagar who until recently headed the state BJP before being replaced by Union minister G. Kishan Reddy, received a rousing reception upon arrival from New Delhi where he took up his new responsibilities in the party. He was taken to the state BJP office in Nampally by his supporters in a rally that took some three hours to make its way from Shamshabad to the party headquarters.
Speaking to media persons later, Sanjay called upon everyone in the party to work for a BJP win in the state elections.
“We will all work under Kishan Reddy’s leadership. Some people keep claiming that BJP has groups. Minor differences of opinion might occur here and there but these are being blown out of proportion. The BRS and Congress may have succeeded to some extent in pushing this narrative but it is the BJP that has found a place in the hearts of the people,” Sanjay said.
“No one in the BJP works for personal glory. Everyone works for the principles the party stands for. The party doesn’t run because of one person, it runs because of everyone in it,” Sanjay said.
“This is the time for the party to decide whether it wants to sink or swim. We fought for the people on various issues, be it farm loan waiver, changes in GO 317, TSPSC question paper leaks, purchase of paddy from farmers or pushing the government to press ahead with installation of the 125-ft Ambedkar statue in Hyderabad. Each of these was an agitation the BJP led. Our workers were beaten up, thrown into prison but we were not deterred,” he said.
Attacking Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, Sanjay said when thousands of farmers were distraught over crop losses in the recent rains and floods, the Chief Minister was busy in Maharashtra trying to expand his party base.
“Rao is scared of going on an inspection tour of flood-hit areas as he knows that people will take him to task. He is running scared,” he said.
On the merger of TSRTC with the government, Sanjay said Chandrashekar Rao must declare if he will pay the RTC workers’ their salaries on the first of every month because he has not been doing so for the entire government staff in the state.
‘This government cannot pay salaries on time and is making tall promises that it will never keep,” Sanjay said.
