After his outbursts against the party leadership, particularly Minister T. Harish Rao, at Tirumala on Monday, sitting MLA of the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) from Malkajigiri constituency, Mynampalli Hanumantha Rao finds himself in a piquant situation after his demand for two seats — one for him and another for his son — was overlooked.
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Speaking to mediapersons after offering prayers to Lord Venkateshwara, Mr.Hanumantha Rao said he had asked for party tickets to contest Malkajigiri, for himself, and Medak, for his son, for the upcoming Assembly elections. He stated that his son M. Rohith had served people in Medak during the COVID-19 pandemic by spending ₹8 crore from his own pocket for medical and other needs.
In a fit of emotion, he said he would contest as an independent candidate, if need be, in case the party preferred to give only one ticket to his family. He went on to add that he would contest Siddipet in the next election and defeat Mr.Harish Rao, come what may. The MLA alleged that Mr.Harish Rao was coming in the way of his getting a ticket for his son and accused the latter of amassing wealth. He also made some personal remarks against the Minister.
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Stating that tickets would be given on capability of candidates, Mr.Hanumantha Rao said he and his son were capable of winning seats on their own. He justified the demand for two tickets pointing out that the “Chief Minister’s family has two tickets as they are capable”.
“Now that the party leadership has announced ticket only for Mr.Hanumantha Rao, it has to be seen whether he would stick to his words or make amends with the party leadership as getting two tickets from another party is also a difficult prospect,” a senior BRS leader close to the leadership said. Party chief K.Chandrasekhar Rao has made it clear that it was for Mr. Hanumantha Rao to accept the party ticket for Malkajigiri or not.
Meanwhile, BRS working president K.T.Rama Rao, who is on a personal visit to the U.S., said on a social media platform that “one of our MLAs who was denied a ticket for his family member, in an outburst, has made some derogatory comments against Minister Harish Rao. I not only strongly condemn the MLA’s behaviour and also want to make it clear that we all stand with Mr. Harish Rao as he has been an integral founding member of the BRS party since its inception and will continue to remain an important pillar of the party as we move forward”.