The Bharatiya Janata Party had a poor show at elections in Huzurnagar. Its candidates secured 1,555 votes in the Assembly elections in 2018, and the maximum 3,267 votes came a decade ago.
But its doctor-candidate for the bypoll, Kota Rama Rao, is confident of winning the seat now, and the party’s ‘speedy recovery’ is from the “health” of the country vis-a-vis the State, he says. “There is a Modi-wave across the country, there is also anti-KCR wave across Telangana,” he says.
His resigning from the government service and joining full-time politics is also for the inspiration from the top and he is emphatic about it. “I joined politics because I am a huge fan of Modiji; I was with the ABVP since my Class VII,” Dr. Rama Rao says. Speaking to The Hindu , Dr. Rama Rao prefers to say that his belonging to the Backward Classes community, particularly Perika caste, will fetch him 50% of the total polled votes, and the victory.
His comparative assessment also being: Article 370, Triple Talaq Bill, patriotism, Swacch Bharat, reservation for economically weaker sections versus double-bedroom houses, Mission Bhagiratha, land for Dalits, RTC strike, and even mosquito menace.
The 44-year-old optimistically rejects the ridicule on the party’s vote share by various parties and cites the thumping Lok Sabha victories in Karimnagar, Nizamabad and Adilabad. “And even in Manipur, we had 1% vote share, now we have 80% of the MLAs there.” Mr. Rama Rao explains his idea of ‘Navratnas’ for Huzurnagar, and with funds from the Centre — it will made a role-model constituency in Telangana, he says
On comments of the ruling TRS, that the BJP colluded with Congress in Huzurnagar, the doctor reiterates that he and the party will always strive for a ‘Congress-mukt Bharat.’ “The BJP’s fight in Huzurnagar is with TRS and not Congress. The TRS, for reasons it knows well, is afraid of BJP, not the Congress,” he asserts.
