Ritesh J.
In the upcoming bypolls in Telangana’s Munugodu constituency, Bahujan Samaj Party in Telangana led by Dr. Praveen Kumar an Ex-IPS officer, gave ticket to an individual from an OBC jati, Andoju Shankara Chary, against three major Reddy candidates of TRS, BJP and INC.
Reddys are politically and socially dominant, and among 2-3 ruling castes of Telangana: that is why all three major parties like TRS, BJP & INC had chosen Reddys to fight the upcoming bypolls in Munugodu constituency. BSP chose a Vishwakarma (OBC) as a challenge to the dominance of Reddys, not only politically but also socially & culturally. It is said that combined Backward Castes’ share in Munugodu population is over 60%, but no OBC has ever been an MLA there. Whereas even though Reddys are a small minority there, they still dominate the politics.
BSP candidate, Andoju Shankara Chary did his masters with specialisation in Medical and Psychiatric Social Work from Osmania University, Hyderabad. He is famous among masses for his social and political activism, especially in Munugodu.
For the bypolls, the TRS’s candidate is Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy, BJP’s is Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy and Congress’s is Palwai Sravanthi Reddy. Earlier, BJP’s candidate Rajagopal Reddy had been in the Congress as the MLA of Munugodu constituency . In a TV interview he claimed that his company Sushee Infra and Mining Limited (SIML) had received mining contracts worth Rs 18,000 crore from the union (BJP) government, after which Telangana political leaders have been accusing him of switching party for the sake of business and money.
After reputed IPS (ex) Dr. RS Praveen Kumar, famously known as RSP, joined the Bahujan Samaj Party in Telangana, its chances have improved tremendously. Dr. RSP is famous among the youth because of his significant contribution in transforming the education sector of Telangana. In just one year, he has reasonably managed to mobilise the people of Bahujan community. He has been on the ground for a year and more now, visiting the remote villages of Telangana, connecting BSP with them and awakening consciousness to pick up the master key of political power for social transformation and economic emancipation.
BSP activist Pallavi Swaero, who with thousands of other workers of BSP has been in Munugodu constituency for more than a month, said that there is an enthusiasm among masses for Dr. RS Praveen Kumar and the BSP candidate Andoju Shankara Chary. She said, though ‘we’re constantly rallying and mobilising the masses the media is deliberately choosing to sideline us’.
When TRS, BJP & Congress publicly present different socio-political ideologies, here all three of them are struggling to continue the feudal political dominance of a particular caste, Reddys.
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Ritesh J. is a follower of Phule-Ambedkarite movement and politics. He is active on social media as Riteshjyotii.
Image courtesy: the internet.
