Though the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) increased its tally from three members in the last Assembly to eight this time, it suffered a major setback as the party’s prominent leaders, including two sitting MLAs and three MPs, tasted defeat in the Telangana Assembly elections, the polling for which was held on November 30.
The BJP State election campaign committee chairman and former Minister Eatala Rajender, the seven-time MLA, lost to his arch rival P. Kaushik Reddy of the BRS in Huzurabad Assembly constituency by a margin of 16,873 votes. Dubbak MLA M. Raghunandhan Rao lost his seat to the BRS candidate.
In a keenly fought electoral battle from Karimnagar Assembly seat, the BJP national general secretary and Karimnagar MP Bandi Sanjay lost by a slender margin of 3,163 votes to the BRS’ nominee G. Kamalakar.
Nizamabad MP Arvind Dharmapuri and Adilabad MP Soyam Bapu Rao of the BJP, who contested from the Korutla and Boath Assembly constituencies, were defeated by the BRS candidates.
