BRS Leader KT Rama Rao Slams Congress Over Mohammad Azharuddin’s Nomination Delay
In a sharp critique, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president KT Rama Rao has called out the Congress government in Telangana for leaving former cricketer Mohammad Azharuddin in limbo. This comes as the state gears up for the Jubilee Hills bypoll, triggered by the sad demise of the sitting BRS MLA.
Rama Rao pointed out that Congress first promised Azharuddin a ticket for the Jubilee Hills seat in the 2023 assembly elections but then pulled it back, asking him to aim for a Legislative Council (MLC) spot under the Governor’s quota instead. Azharuddin had lost to BRS’s Maganti Gopinath from that very seat last time around. But even that MLC nomination hasn’t materialized yet, leaving Azharuddin "hanging in the middle," as Rama Rao put it.
Recalling the timeline, Rama Rao said back in July 2023, when K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) was still Chief Minister, the government tried to nominate two BRS leaders—Shravanbhai and Satyanarayan—to the MLC under the Governor’s quota. The then BJP-appointed Governor rejected the proposal. Elections soon followed, and after BRS’s defeat, the leaders challenged the Governor’s decision in court, arguing it was unfair.
"We fought the case all the way to the Supreme Court, but the government couldn’t make those nominations during the proceedings," Rama Rao explained. Despite this, the new Congress government went ahead and cleared names like Amer Ali Khan and Prof M Kodandaram for similar MLC spots. The new Governor, seen as aligned with both Congress and BJP, approved their files. But the Supreme Court stepped in two months ago, ruling those nominations invalid. Now, the court has put a hold on all such appointments until the final verdict, with the case still pending.
Rama Rao didn’t hold back on Azharuddin’s situation. "They can’t nominate him now—the file sits unsigned because of the Supreme Court matter. Congress is turning him into a scapegoat," he said. He added a personal note, saying, "I don’t want to say too much—Azhar Bhai is my friend, a good man who excelled in cricket."
The BRS leader also took a dig at Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, whose cabinet approved Azharuddin and Prof M Kodandaram’s names for the Legislative Council last month. The Jubilee Hills bypoll became necessary after Gopinath, who had beaten Azharuddin in 2023, passed away on June 8.
This ongoing drama highlights the tensions between BRS and Congress in Telangana politics, especially around key nominations and by-elections. As the Supreme Court case unfolds, Azharuddin’s political future remains uncertain, keeping everyone watching closely.
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