Telangana assembly polls: K Chandrasekhar Rao's early trump card to halt dissent, poachers

HYDERABAD: Bharat Rashtra Samithi, which has re-nominated majority sitting MLAs in its candidate list of 115 declared on Monday, has fielded new faces in nine assembly constituencies.
New candidates have been announced for Station Ghanpur, Khanapur, Boath, Asifabad, Wyra, Vemulawada, Uppal and Korutla assembly constituencies. Kamareddy sitting MLA Gampa Govardhan is out of the contest this time as CM K Chandrasekhar Rao is in the fray.
While few were denied tickets due to allegations against them, one of them opted out to give his family member a chance.Erstwhile Adilabad district which has eight segments, witnessed maximum change of three. The BRS leadership, which maintained strategic silence on corruption charges against some sitting MLAs, axed them from the candidate list. For instance, Station Ghanpur MLA T Rajaiah faced harassment allegations by a woman sarpanch. Also, both Rajaiah and former deputy CM Kadiyam Srihari have been trading charges for two years. Finally, party preferred Srihari.
Similarly, there were corruption charges against Khanapur MLA Rekha Naik in implementing Dalit Bandhu scheme. KCR indirectly cautioned Naik and others with purported charges. The CM picked KTR's classmate, Bhukya Johnson Rathod Naik, from Khanapur.
Uppal MLA Bethi Reddy Subash Reddy was reportedly denied a ticket for poor performance coupled with other allegations and Bandari Laxma Reddy was given the chance. In Asifabad, party decided to prop up Kova Laxmi, who lost 2018 polls to Atram Sakku, who contested on a Congress ticket and later joined BRS. Sakku is likely to be given ticket from Adilabad LS in 2024. Vemulawada MLA Chennamaneni Ramesh was asked to step aside till his case on Indian citizenship is decided by courts.
Chalmeda Laxmi Narsimha Rao has been chosen from Vemulawada. Korutla MLA K Vidyasagar Rao decided to stay away from active politics and sought a ticket for his son, Dr Sanjay Kalvakuntla, which the party accepted. Wyra MLA Lavudya Naik, who was elected as an Independent in 2018 and later joined BRS, was left in the cold. BRS decided to field Madan Lal from Wyra. From Boath, it nominated Anil Jadhav in place of Rathod Bapu Rao. Jadhav contested as Independent in 2018 and as Congress candidate in 2014 and both times he lost.