SNCN ACHARYULU
Hyderabad
With elections approaching the main political parties are concentrating on selecting their candidates. At the same time, many politicians are planning to change their loyalties. BJP leaders are planning to join the Congress and some Congress leaders are planning to join the BRS and the BJP.
The leaders who want to jump from one party to another are waiting for confirmation of their party tickets. Defections by politicians are common in an election year. ‘Seasonal’ politicians always change parties.
Some politicians in the ruling party and in opposition parties are creating speculations about defections. If the names of senior leaders figure in these speculations second-line leaders will get confused and will defect. Second-line leaders expect party tickets. When some leader joins from another party second line leaders get doubts about getting tickets. Then they join some other party expecting a ticket.
For example, the BJP leader of Nalgonda district, Jitta Bala Krishna Reddy, is likely to join the Congress. At the same time the Congress leader of the same district, K. Anil Kumar Reddy, joined the BRS. Both Jitta and Anil are strong leaders in the Bhongir Assembly constituency.
In political circles, there are many senior politicians who are on the defectors’ list. When some leaders express anger at their party leaders, immediately their names appear on the defectors’ list.
Opposition parties are also trying to create confusion with their speculations. There were speculations that former Congress MP Ponnam Prabhakar and Congress MP N. Uttam Kumar Reddy are planning to leave the Congress and join the BRS. But both of them denied these speculations.
Similarly, there are speculations that senior BJP leader Vijayashanthi is likely to leave the party and join the Congress. Former Minister Chandrasekhar, former MLC Ranga Reddy and some others too are planning to join the Congress.
Two days ago some Congress leaders held discussions with senior BJP leader DK Aruna. They are planning to join the BJP. Former MLA Komatireddy Rajgopal Reddy also may leave the BJP and return to the Congress.
Gong by current indications in coming days there will be large-scale defections from all political parties.
