BJP MPs still unsure about contesting assembly polls

Hyderabad: Telangana BJP is still at its wits’ end over senior leaders’ indecision on contesting the forthcoming assembly elections which are only a couple of months away. Union home minister Amit Shah made it abundantly clear to party MPs during his recent trip here that they should not be found wanting and asked them to contest the ensuing elections. However, some of the senior leaders, particularly sitting MPs, have remained non-committal on entering the fray.Currently, the BJP has four Lok Sabha MPs and one Rajya Sabha MP (Telangana leader K Laxman was elected to the upper house from Uttar Pradesh). Not surprisingly, none of these leaders has filed applications as aspirants during the recent filing of applications.Making incumbent MPs run for MLAs was a strategy used by the saffron party successfully in West Bengal where many of its MPs entered the fray in the assembly elections and had even won. Despite receiving 6,000 applications, the party is yet to release its first list. “Ironically, top leaders in Delhi may be unaware of the entire application filing process. List segregation is yet to begin,” a party source said.Party leaders were told that at least five or six applications would be screened and given to Shah’s team for taking the final decision. “If none of the seniors has filed applications, does this mean they will not be considered for tickets? If so, why did the leadership initiate this entire process,” wondered a party leader, who has recently distanced himself from the party.During the 2018 assembly elections, all the sitting MPs (excluding D Arvind) entered the fray but were defeated and later contested in the 2019 general elections.According to sources, Arvind, who has more than four years left of his Rajya Sabha tenure, is hesitant to run from Musheerabad assembly constituency again, a source said.Even BJP state chief G Kishan Reddy has been playing coy on his next move. “Having served twice as a minister in the Union cabinet, the natural recourse would be to return to the Centre or take up a bigger role at the national level in the party,” a source said.Interestingly, Kishan Reddy is facing strong competition in his Amberpet assembly seat as some local leaders are insisting that they be given a shot in the upcoming elections, the source added.Though national general secretary and Karimnagar MP Bandi Sanjay said he will run from Karimnagar assembly seat, insiders in the party said he will also want to contest only the MP seat in the present circumstances.