The Hindu : Their fortunes hinge on seat-sharing talks

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Mar 04, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Their fortunes hinge on seat-sharing talks

By T. Lalith Singh

HYDERABAD, MARCH 3. Their political future at stake, several senior leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from the city have kept their fingers crossed as the party prepares for the crucial parleys on sharing seats with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP).

Prominent among the party leaders whose political fortunes are solely reliant on the seat-sharing talks are Baddam Bal Reddy, who is eager to regain his stronghold in Karwan, the Deputy Mayor, G. Subhash Chanderji, who has always been in the waiting list, and the former city unit president, C. Ramachandra Reddy.

The moves of the State BJP President, N. Indrasena Reddy, are also being watched closely amid expectations that the former Malakpet MLA might prefer to shift to the Lok Sabha and contest from Nalgonda. "Quite a few have set their eyes on the seat as Malakpet is considered a safe bet," a senior leader said.

The Deputy Mayor insists he is in the race and with every reason. "I'm among the senior most leaders in the party and it is high time I got promoted to the Legislative Assembly," he says. Though he prefers the Malakpet seat, if Mr. Indrasena Reddy decides to vacate it for a Lok Sabha seat, Mr. Subhash Chanderji says he will not hesitate to pick up the gauntlet from any other constituencies. "I have waited enough and this is a do-or-die election for me as far as my political career is concerned," he said.

Mr. Ramachandra Reddy is said to be keen on the Sanathnagar seat, which is held by the TDP's Sripathi Rajeswar. The city BJP has added the seat to its wish-list citing the popularity the party enjoys in the constituency. Says another senior functionary, "Mr. Reddy wields considerable clout in Sanathnagar and is also not averse to the idea of entering the poll arena from the Khairatabad segment."

Khairatabad is another TDP seat which the BJP wants this time. However, Mr. Reddy remains non-committal, saying he will abide by the party's decision. "Both seats are with our alliance partner. If my party gets any of the two seats and directs me to contest, I will abide by it," he says.

Another senior leader, Baddam Bal Reddy, is said to be determined to avenge his defeat at the hands of the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) candidate, Mohd. Mukhtada, in the byelections held a few months ago.

In the 1999 elections, the three-time Karwan MLA was shifted from his base and pitted against the MIM president, Sultan Salahuddin Owaisi, for the Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat. While Mr. Bal Reddy failed in the mission of defeating Mr.Owaisi, the MIM's Syed Sajjad wrested the Karwan seat from the BJP defeating its candidate, G. Kishen Reddy. In the byelection necessitated by Sajjad's death last year, Mr. Bal Reddy desperately tried to win the seat back. But, even a high-profile campaign failed to help him retrieve lost ground.

If the Hyderabad seat ends up in the BJP's kitty after seat-sharing with the TDP, the senior leader is likely to end up with a dilemma similar to the one he was faced with during the 1999 elections. However, Mr. Bal Reddy is learnt to be leaning more towards the Assembly seat now. "It makes sense as Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat has turned into an MIM citadel and it will be futile for him to contest from there. And if he does not contest Karwan, it will be lost for a third successive time," a leader points out.

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