News of only Union Minister from Telangana Bandaru Dattatreya being asked to put in his papers ahead of the Union Cabinet reshuffle on Sunday came as a surprise to the state BJP leadership.
Highly placed sources said Mr. Dattatreya received a call from the BJP leadership on Thursday asking him to rush to Delhi.
The Minister was in the midst of a review meeting with NABARD officials when the call came. He left for Delhi immediately and met BJP president Amit Shah. It is believed that he was asked to resign so that the party could utilise his services for the organisational work in near future.
The 70-year-old Mr. Dattatreya is seen as the most non-controversial and acceptable BJP leader in Telangana. His rapport with other party leaders is what had endeared him to the cadre and the general public.
State BJP leaders, wishing anonymity, said the party’s central leadership obviously was eyeing young leadership in the new State and hence, wanted to ease out seniors in the major Cabinet reshuffle.
The question uppermost on the minds of the local leaders is who will replace Mr. Dattatreya. A section of the leaders feel that BJP national general secretary Muralidhar Rao stood a chance of getting into the Union Cabinet. Being close to the BJP’s central leadership, Mr. Muralidhar Rao is said to have developed good rapport with almost all top leaders. Name of former State BJP chief and MLA G.Kishan Reddy has also cropped up.
Some leaders say as both these leaders are not Members of Parliament, they may not be considered. However, a senior State leader said the Rajya Sabha seat held by Mr. Venkaiah Naidu from Rajasthan could always be given to one from Telangana, if they were indeed taken into the Union Cabinet.
“We have only one MP from the State, who happens to be a Union Minister. And, if he is dropped then what message is the party going to send across to party leaders and cadre here. Moreover, the development coming at a time when party State president K. Laxman has embarked on the Telangana Vimochana Yatra for strengthening the party from the grassroots is sure to turn out to be a setback,” a senior BJP legislator told The Hindu on Friday night.