Former Health Minister Etala Rajender, who was
recently dismissed from his post, today said that his supporters and well-wishers from nine districts of Telangana were still with him despite the efforts of the TRS government to alienate him from the people of the state.
Speaking at a press conference held Karimnagar district's Huzurabad, he claimed that his supporters had also expressed displeasure at the way he was expelled from the state Cabinet and that they had come out in his support.
"I am fortunate that my supporters from not only Karimnagar but also from Khammam and seven other districts are with me - my well-wishers are extremely unhappy at Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao for levelling false charges of land grabbing against me. He was prompted by his vendetta against me. I will consult my supporters to chart out my future political plans. For this, I will meet with them in Hyderabad soon. After that, I will announce my plans to the public," Rajender said.
"I will soon take a decision on my future plans as I have said before. I will continue to fight for people's rights and their self-respect," he added.
The former minister then once again flayed the CM for expelling him from the Cabinet by citing his alleged involvement in a case of land encroachment, and said that a fresh probe, as
ordered by the high court, would eventually prove his innocence.
"The TRS has risen to its current level of prominence with the help and cooperation of its ministers, MLAs, leaders, and activists. Now, the party is repaying such efforts by targeting the same people who have toiled endlessly to help the party grow. The party's high command took a unilateral decision to launch a witch-hunt against me despite my 20 years of service. The government did not even follow legal procedures and failed to serve notices before initiating a probe into my hatchery," he fumed.
Accusing the CM of expelling him on flimsy charges, Rajender alleged that leaders of the TRS had no freedom to speak their minds as a result of the CM's control, implying perhaps that this was the reason they had supported the decision to oust him from his post.
He demanded that the government conduct a proper probe helmed by a judge as per legal procedures, and expressed his hope that the probe would clear his name.
The leader has also found an ally against the TRS in TJS chief M Kodandaram who recently said, "It is clearly vendetta politics that has prompted the CM to shunt Etala Rajender out of his post. The dismissal is simply a result of the minister's attempts to speak up against the TRS regime. The CM has used his power to cast aside a potential rival of his, that is all."