Telangana polls: 3 BJP MPs face defeat, 3 Cong MPs win
Hyderabad: Three BJP Lok Sabha members from Telangana who contested the assembly elections lost the polls on Sunday.
However, three Congress Lok Sabha members and a BRS MP, who fought the state election, emerged victorious.
BJP national general secretary and Lok Sabha member Bandi Sanjay Kumar lost from Karimnagar, while the BJP's Nizamabad MP D Arvind was defeated in Koratla.
Another BJP Lok Sabha member from Adilabad Soyam Bapu Rao lost the assembly election from the Boath constituency.
State Congress president A Revanth Reddy, who is the Lok Sabha member from Malkajgiri, won from Kodangal. He also contested from Kamareddy seat but lost.
Congress Lok Sabha members Komatireddy Venkat Reddy and N Uttam Kumar Reddy won from Nalgonda and Huzurnagar, respectively.
BRS Lok Sabha member from Medak Kotha Prabhakar Reddy won from the Dubbak assembly segment.
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TMC says Mamata Banerjee 'most suitable' to leader INDIA bloc
New Delhi, Dec 8: The Trinamool Congress on Sunday raised the pitch on the demand to make its chief Mamata Banerjee the leader of the INDIA bloc, with party MP Kirti Azad saying she is the "most suitable" for the job as she is the only leader who has repeatedly defeated the BJP.
West Bengal Chief Minister Banerjee's statement signalling her intent to take charge of the opposition alliance drew support from NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar who described her as a capable leader, while RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav stressed that the decision must be reached through consensus.
"We have no issue with Mamata Banerjee leading the bloc, but keeping in mind there are so many senior politicians in the anti-BJP coalition, there's a need to sit together and take a collective decision on choosing a leader," Yadav told reporters in Kolkata on Sunday.
Asked about Banerjee's remarks, Pawar said on Saturday that the Trinamool Congress chief has the right to show her intent to head the opposition alliance.
"She is a capable leader in the country and has the right to say it. The MPs she has sent to the Parliament are hardworking and aware," he told reporters in Kolhapur, Maharashtra.
In an interview to a news channel on Friday, Banerjee expressed dissatisfaction with the functioning of the opposition INDIA bloc and indicated her readiness to take charge of the alliance if given an opportunity.
She said she could manage the dual responsibility of running the opposition front while continuing her role as the chief minister of West Bengal.
Her statement comes at a time when voices of discontent have emerged within the opposition INDIA bloc following the recent electoral setbacks for the Congress, including in Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra.
In a video statement, Azad said that a discussion is going on these days on the issue of the need for leadership change in the INDIA bloc.
"Senior leaders, including the seniormost Sharad Pawar ji, have also said Mamata Banerjee should be made the leader of the INDIA bloc, " Azad said.
"There is a need for change. Mamata Banerjee is the only leader who has repeatedly defeated the BJP and Modi ji, and in the recent byelections in West Bengal, BJP was thrown out of Bengal," he said.
"She has a lot of experience, she herself said she has created the INDIA bloc, and she has said that she is ready to lead the bloc if she gets an opportunity. She has been an MP, Union Minister, and since 2011 she has been the Chief Minister of West Bengal," he said.
"It is time to make Mamata Banerjee the leader of INDIA bloc. With her experience she is the most suitable for this job," he added.
