HYDERABAD: Former minister Eatala Rajender of the BJP has adopted a ‘luncheon meetings’ strategy to interact with voters in villages until his padayatra resumes.
It is almost a month now since his padayatra had to be stopped due to his knee surgery. Eatala, who kept meeting the voters at his home immediately after going back to Huzurabad constituency following his surgery, is now visiting villages and holding luncheon meetings with the voters.
He has been receiving a good response from the villagers. “While Eatala started the luncheon meetings, what is most encouraging is that local people from many villages have started inviting him on their own to have lunch with him. In many villages, the locals have extended their support to him,” said a close aide of Eatala.
Eatala completed 220-km padayatra covering over 77 villages during his ‘Praja Deevena’ padayatra before undergoing the surgery. The padayatra is likely to resume in September first or second week. Sources close to Eatala did not rule out the possibility of Eatala curtailing his padayatra keeping in view his knee condition.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has asked the political parties to give their views on holding bypolls and general elections to the assemblies of five states and campaigning in view of Covid-19. ECI secretary Ajay Kumar Verma, in his letter in August second week, said by-elections were pending in several constituencies in various states and asked the parties to give their views on the guidelines and instructions for campaigning during the elections before August 30.
A notification for bypoll to Huzurabad is expected in September. Ruling TRS candidate Gellu Srinivas Yadav too has hit the campaign trail. Accompanied by a minister, including T Harish Rao, Gangula Kamalakar and Koppula Eshwar, Yadav is moving from one habitation to the other in the constituency.
Congress is likely to announce its candidate by the month-end.
