Former minister Etala Rajender today stated that he had maintained close relations with many leaders of the BJP since his days as a leader of the Telangana agitation.
Speaking to the media at Huzurabad, he recalled that he had shared several platforms with prominent party leaders like Sushma Swaraj and Bandaru Dattatreya during the movement.
"The BJP is not a new party to me. In fact, many BJP leaders are old friends of mine. I must clarify that this friendship or bond is not the result of the developments that have taken place during the last two or three months. Neither are these events the reason for my exit from the TRS. Rather, I left the party as the fact that I would raise many problems being faced by the public during party meetings did not sit well with many in the ruling party. Many of the party's leaders did not like the fact that I would frequently raise such issues," Rajender claimed.
Noting that the workers of a party were its primary source of strength, the former minister said that it was the hard work of the cadres that played a role in ensuring the victory of any leader aspiring for the post of a Sarpanch or of an MP. (This was, in all likelihood, a veiled attack on what he claims is the "dictatorial attitude" of the TRS high command which "treats party leaders and workers like slaves".)
He also said that the people of Huzurabad did not have any issues with the flag of any political party, and added that they were just happy to see him "breathing fresh air" after his exit from the TRS.
Asking the officials of the state government to function within the limits of the law, the leader urged them to refrain from going to the residences of BJP leaders to harass them, and said that he would not sit by if such harassment continued in his constituency.