Though there is no hint yet from the Election Commission on the by-election for Huzurabad Assembly seat, both Telangana Rashtra Samithi and Bharatiya Janata Party have announced their candidates.

Gellu Srinivas Yadav, a former leader of TRS student wing . and Eatala Rajender, who quit TRS to join the BJP two months ago, will contest the seat and have started campaigning.

The bypoll was necessitated by Eatala’s quitting the TRS after he was ousted from the Cabinet on alleged land grab charges.

The bypoll is crucial for the ruling party as a victory for Eatala could give a fresh lease of life for the Opposition in the State.

While the BJP is hoping to win the bypoll, for Eatala it is a critical phase of his political career.

The Congress, which is trying to revive its lost glory under the leadership of PCC President A Revanth Reddy, is yet to announce a candidate.

Campaign

The TRS President launched a surrogate campaign for the bypoll a few weeks ago. With an eye on the bypoll, he selected Huzurabad as a pilot for implementing the ambitious ‘Dalit Bandhu’ scheme to provide a financial assistance of ₹10 lakh each to Dalit families, targeted at the Dalit vote base in Huzurabad.

The Government released ₹500 crore on Tuesday to kickstart the programme in the constituency.

Roadblock

His efforts, however, have hit a roadblock, with former IPS officer RS Praveen Kumar joining the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) recently. With a huge following among the Dalit youth and intellectuals, his entry into politics could spoil KCR’s plan. Criticising the Chief Minister, Praveen felt that the funds could be utilised to build schools and hospitals.

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