As the by-election to Huzurabad assembly seat is round the corner, top leaders of the Scheduled Caste and Backward Class communities are in full demand for the opposition political parties.
The ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi is hoping to attract the votes of SCs by vigorously implementing the Dalit Bandhu scheme and the BCs by releasing funds under various schemes, besides fielding a BC candidate and giving prominent posts to BC leaders like Vakulabharanam Krishna Mohan from Huzurabad.
The opposition BJP is also going all out to attract the weaker sections. Former minister and BJP candidate in Huzurabad Eatala Rajender has already been playing the BC card, as he himself belongs to the BC community.
He is also attracting the SCs, by claiming credit for the Dalit Bandhu scheme, saying but for his revolt against the TRS, the KCR government would not have implemented the scheme in Huzurabad.
The Congress, too, is planning to field a BC candidate, preferably former minister Konda Surekha, in the Huzurabad by-poll to cash in on the BC sentiment.
Now, two prominent leaders of these two communities – Manda Krishna Madiga championing the cause of Dalits and R Krishnaiah of BC Welfare Association – have become crucial for the opposition parties, as both of them have been adopting an anti-TRS stand.
The party leaders from the Congress and the BJP have been making a beeline to Manda Krishna and Krishnaiah to seek their support in the Huzurabad by-election.
PCC president A Revanth Reddy and other Congress leaders already called on Manda Krishna, who had been taking rest after undergoing a surgery for a fracture in New Delhi. They requested him to extend support to the Congress in the by-poll.
Another Dalit Congress leader Addanki Dayakar also had a meeting with Bahujan Samaj Party leader R S Praveen Kumar and discussed the possibility of working together.
On Saturday, Rajender met BC leader R Krishnaiah at the latter’s residence and discussed with him the forthcoming Huzurabad by-poll.
He brought to the notice of Krishnaiah that the TRS government was spending thousands of crores in the constituency to win the by-poll and requested that Krishnaiah extend his support to him in the by-election.
Earlier, Rajender also had a meeting with Manda Krishna Madiga and recalled his association with the Dalit leader in their fight during the Telangana movement. He also pointed out that he had participated in the MRPS movement.
He requested Manda Krishna’s support to put an end to the dictatorial government of KCR.
