Uneviable task awaits new Telangana BJP chief as he takes on

An unenviable task awaits Bandi Sanjay Kumar, who was appointed president of the BJP's Telangana unit, as the party hopes to emerge as an alternative to the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi.

It calls for a herculean effort on the part of Kumar to take on the TRS which now holds a stranglehold over Telangana politics under the leadership of veteran K Chandrasekhar Rao.

The BJP Lok Sabha member from Karimnagar was on Wednesday appointed unit president and he succeeds K Laxman, BJP sources said.

The 48-year-old leader, who belongs to the backward class, has been associated with the RSS since his childhood and held various positions in ABVP and Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), the BJP's youth wing.

Though it was felt that the BJP leadership might continue with the incumbent Laxman, it chose Sanjay Kumar, who is known for his strong Hindutva views.

Kumar had served as a corporator in Karimnagar Municipal Corporation and headed the BJP in the town.

He lost the Assembly polls from Karimnagar in 2014 and 2018.

However, his thumping win in last year's Lok Sabha polls in Karimnagar, a TRS bastion, came as a surprise to many.

Outgoing state unit president Laxman congratulated Kumar and expressed confidence that the BJP would come to power in the state in 2023 by spearheading struggles against the alleged anti-people policies of the TRS government.