BRS gets into bypoll mode; meets on to zero in on picks

Hyderabad: The BRS leadership has begun preparations for the bypolls in the constituencies where their party MLAs defected to the ruling Congress party. The party leaders have started the constituency wise meetings with the leaders and cadre to chalk out a strategy including finding suitable candidates to contest.

The leadership believes that, with the Speaker issuing notices to MLAs who defected to the Congress, byelections in the state are imminent. BRS leaders, including K. T. Rama Rao and T. Harish Rao, have repeatedly told party members that byelections will be held soon and urged the cadre to be prepared for the polls.

After the setbacks in the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections, the Pink party is keen to regain its past glory in the byelections to keep their flock together. The party had skipped the MLC elections but now it does not want to take chances in the bypolls and also in the local body elections. Hence the leadership had started the preparations.

On Sunday, the party organised a meeting of the activists of Serilingampally where MLA Arikepudi Gandhi was issued notice by the Speaker G Prasad Kumar. KTR said that the Serilingampally MLA and nine other MLAs joined the Congress party for “selfish gains”. He added that while MLAs may leave, the cadre remains loyal to the party and will ensure victory once again.

Earlier, a meeting for the local body elections was held in Gajwel, the constituency of BRS chief K. Chandrashekar Rao.

Speaking at the event, Harish Rao said that according to a recent survey, the party is expected to win 16 to 18 Zilla Parishads in the state. He called upon party workers to function like a family and avoid overconfidence. “There should be confidence, but no overconfidence. You must explain to people how Telangana was in the past and how it has developed now,” Harish Rao said.

KTR also instructed district party presidents to hold coordination meetings in every constituency and prepare rigorously for the polls.