Etela Rajender joined BJP only eight months ago. But he has emerged as the top and influential leader in Telangana BJP within a short span.
This is because Etela Rajender was a popular political figure in Telangana who worked in TRS along with KCR from 2003 to 2021. He actively took part in Telangana statehood agitation, won Assembly elections from TRS for five successive terms. After Telangana state was formed in June 2014, CM KCR took Etela into his cabinet and gave him finance portfolio considered as No.2 in cabinet after CM post from 2014 to 2018. KCR again made Etela as health minister in his second term in office from 2019 to 2021.
But due to political confrontation with KCR in second term, he was sacked from cabinet in May 2021. Etela resigned to TRS and his Huzurabad MLA post, joined BJP, contested Huzurabad bypoll as BJP candidate and trounced TRS even after KCR spent thousands of crores of rupees to defeat Etela.
Etela attracted the attention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and union home minister Amit Shah by defeating TRS in Huzurabad.
At a time, when KCR has launched a battle against Modi and BJP and bringing all parties across India together to oust Modi and BJP from power in 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP high command is reportedly considering Etela for BJP Telangana president post to check KCR and TRS in Telangana. BJP high command reportedly believes that only Etela is capable to dethrone TRS and KCR from power in Telangana.
The present BJP Telangana president Bandi Sanjay term ends in March 2023. Bandi Sanjay was appointed as president in March 2020 and his three year tenure will end in March 2023. This means Sanjay is left with only one year tenure.
The Telangana Assembly polls are scheduled in December 2023 and BJP high command reportedly feels that the time will be ripe to make Etela president in March 2023 so that he can handle Assembly polls for nine months and defeat TRS.
Etela’s track record of active participation in Telangana statehood agitation for 12 years, his popularity, successful political career and hailing from Backward Classes are his advantages that no other BJP leader in Telangana can boast of.
