Hyderabad: Tense moments were witnessed in Warangal city at the residence of former Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) BRS MLA Aroori Ramesh, who had met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Hyderabad a day earlier on Wednesday, March 12. He hinted at joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Aroori Ramesh was to address a press meet to announce his decision to quit the BRS and join the BJP when former BRS Minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao, and ex-BRS MLA Basavaraj Saraiah and others landed at his house to persuade him against joining the BJP. In the last few weeks, two BRS MPs had also joined the BJP in the run up to the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in April-May.
Dayakar Rao and Saraiah claimed that on the directions of former Minister T. Harish Rao they had come to hold discussions with Ramesh and persuade him to change his decision. A few minutes later, he was seen being taken in a car. It is understood that the BRS leaders reportedly told him that Harish Rao would hold discussions with him.
Moments later the BJP cadre arrived at the location, blocked his car and dragged Ramesh out of the vehicle.
BJP leaders who had come to Ramesh’s house raised slogans against BRS leaders Dayakar Rao and Saraiah. They asked Ramesh not to go along with the BRS leaders.
Sources said ex-BRS MLA Ramesh who had won from the Wardhannapet constituency on BRS tickets twice, is a strong claimant for the Warangal SC reserved Lok Sabha seat if he joins the BJP. The BJP is poaching as many leaders as it can from the BRS, which has been weakened after it lost the Telangana Assembly elections last December to the Congress.
Though the BJP won only eight Assembly seats, it is likely to be in a direct fight with the ruling Congress given that the Lok Sabha polls see voting on national issues. The BRS, which was positioning itself for a national role will find it difficult to win seats.
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