Both Congress, BJP keep political pot boiling against BRS in Maheshwaram

Rangareddy: Unlike other areas, political situation in Maheshwaram constituency heats up even before the BRS leadership releases its first list of candidates on Thursday. The reason is the gruesome murder of a social activist Shaikh Sayeed Bin Abdul Rehman Bawazeer last week that left people and political parties unnerved.

While people are found venting frustration over the way crime is became a new normal, especially in Pahadishareef, Balapur and Bandlaguda police station limits, that together shares boundaries with the Jalpally area, the urban local body on the city outskirts known as heaven of land grabbers and land mafias given the swaths of government lands spread across the municipality.

Bawazeer rose to fame using social media platforms highlighting the sufferings of people, specially of Osman Nagar area in Jalpally squarely holding the AIMIM-BRS leadership responsible. This is said to have led to his gruesome murder that made people as well as political leaders of the constituency unnerved.

The political bubble retched up following his killing on the intervening night of August 10-11. It led to the arrest of four accused, including Ahmed Bin Hajab, Ahmed Sadi, the AIMIM in-charge of Jalpally municipality, his son Abdallah Sadi, the municipal chairman, and Mohammed Ayub Khan. The other two accused Omer Sadi and Saleh Sadi are still on the run.

Leaders, irrespective of parties in the constituency, are of the view that the chilling murder will surely change the political equations of the constituency. It may cast a shadow over the election outcome in the days to come.

Barely a week after the murder, the first list of BRS candidates was released on Thursday. It included P Sabitha Indra Reddy, the Minister of Education and a sitting MLA, from the constituency.

However, defections in BRS keeps the political pot boiling in the constituency as a slew of leaders switched their loyalties in favour of Congress in recent months. Mayor of BadangpetParijatha Narsimha Reddy, Kotha Manohar Reddy and former chairman of Ranga Reddy ZillaGrandhalayaSamasthaKapatiPanduranga Reddy.

Although there were reports of former GHMC Mayor Teegala Krishna Reddy was joining the Congress fold, but his recent meeting with Sabitha raised doubts over his ambitions. However, both the Congress and BJP keep the pot boiling with frequent protests against the BRS in Maheshwaram.

“Apart from leaders, a myriad number of people from different parties joined the Congress fold in Maheshwaram constituency. They include 300-400 alone in the Jalpally municipality recently,” said Abdul Bari, vice-president, Jalpally Municipal Congress Committee.

While the BRS defections upset the party leaders and cadre in the constituency, any possible action from AIMIM leadership against Ahmed Saadi and Abdallah Saadi after their arrest in the murder case will leave two positions vacant in the Jalpally area, where the party has a support of 14 councillors in a 28-ward municipality.

People have their ears to the ground to know the course of action the AIMIM will take against Ahmed Saadi and his son as unconfirmed reports are emerging that both will be suspended from the party.