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Etela Rajender
Rajender in 2023
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
Incumbent
Assumed office 4 June 2024
Preceded by	Revanth Reddy
Constituency	Malkajgiri
Minister of Health, Medical and Family Welfare Government of Telangana
In office 12 February 2019 – 2 May 2021
Governor	E. S. L. Narasimhan Tamilisai Soundararajan
Chief Minister	K. Chandrashekar Rao
Preceded by	C. Laxma Reddy
Succeeded by	T. Harish Rao
Minister of Finance Government of Telangana
In office 2 June 2014 – 6 September 2018
Governor	E. S. L. Narasimhan
Chief Minister	K. Chandrashekar Rao
Preceded by	Office established
Succeeded by	T. Harish Rao
Member of Legislative Assembly, Telangana
In office 2 June 2014 – 7 December 2023
Preceded by	Telangana Assembly created
Succeeded by	Kaushik Reddy
Constituency	Huzurabad
Member of Legislative Assembly, Andhra Pradesh
In office 2009–2014
Preceded by	Constituency established
Succeeded by	Telangana Assembly created
Constituency	Huzurabad
In office 2004–2009
Preceded by	Muddasani Damodar Reddy
Succeeded by	Constituency dissolved
Constituency	Kamalapur
Personal details
Born	(1964-03-20) 20 March 1964 (age 60) Kamalapur, Andhra Pradesh (now in Telangana), India
Political party	Bharatiya Janata Party (since 2021)
Other political affiliations	Bharat Rashtra Samithi (2003–2021)
Spouse	Jamuna
Children	2
Alma mater	Osmania University (B.Sc)

Etela Rajender (born 20 March 1964) is an Indian politician from Telangana serving as the Member of Parliament from Malkajgiri Lok Sabha constituency. He previously served as the first Finance Minister of Telangana from 2014 to 2018 and as the Health Minister of Telangana from 2019 to 2021. He is a member of Bharatiya Janata Party since 2021.

Rajender represented Kamalapur Assembly constituency from 2004 to 2010 and Huzurabad Assembly constituency from 2010 to 2023 in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly and Telangana Legislative Assembly. He was a member of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) party until 2021, when he joined Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Political career

Rajender joined TRS in 2003. He is recognised as a student leader with a left-wing ideology.

He was elected as the Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Kamalapur Assembly constituency in the 2004 Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly election. He defeated the incumbent MLA Muddasani Damodar Reddy. He served as the TRS floor leader in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly. He resigned as the MLA in 2008 and was re-elected as an MLA from the same constituency in the 2008 by-election.

In 2009, the Kamalapur constituency was merged with Huzurabad Assembly constituency. He contested the 2009 Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly election from Huzurabad constituency and won. In 2010 he resigned as the MLA and won the by-election.

When Telangana state was established in 2014, he was appointed the Finance Minister of Telangana in the first K. Chandrashekar Rao ministry, and served until 2018.

He contested the 2018 Telangana Legislative Assembly election and was re-elected as the MLA from Huzurabad constituency. In 2019, he took oath as the Minister of Health for Telangana. As part of the 2018 election's declaration of assets by contestants, he has furnished ₹42.41 crore (equivalent to ₹57 crore or US$6.8 million in 2023) in assets and was the richest among other ministers.

In May 2021, Rajender, along with his followers and Jamuna Hatcheries, faced allegations of land encroachments in Achampet and Hakimpet villages in Medak district. His ministerial portfolio was removed and he was subsequently dismissed from the state cabinet. Subsequently, on 4 June, he resigned from TRS. On 12 June, he resigned as MLA.

On 14 June 2021, Rajender joined the BJP in the presence of BJP leaders Dharmendra Pradhan and G. Kishan Reddy. He has also resigned as the president of Nampally Exhibition Society, which he held since 2014. He contested the by-election held later that year and won as the MLA.

In 2023 assembly elections, he contested from Huzurabad and Gazwel as BJP candidate and lost in both places to BRS candidates. In 2024 Loksabha elections he contested from Malkajgiri and won as MP with a huge margin of 3,91,475 votes against Congress's Patnam Sunitha Mahender Reddy.

Member of Legislative Assembly

Member of parliament

Personal life

Etela was born on 20 March 1964 into a Mudiraju family in Kamalapur, Hanumakonda district of present-day Telangana. He has studied B.Sc. from Osmania University in 1984. He married Jamuna, who owns Jamuna Hatcheries. The couple has two children, a son and a daughter.

References

1. ‘Government trying to crush Telangana movement’ - ANDHRA PRADESH. The Hindu (2010-01-23). Retrieved on 2016-01-13.
2. Portfolios of the Council of Ministers in Telangana. The Hindu (2014-06-02). Retrieved on 2016-01-13.
3. "Sacked Telangana Minister Eatala Rajender Resigns as TRS MLA, Likely to Join BJP". News18. 12 June 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
4. ^ "Telangana CM KCR Takes Away Health Minister's Portfolio Over Land Grabbing Allegations". News18. 1 May 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
5. ^ K. M., Dayashankar (2 April 2014). "Etela faces stiff competition". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 10 July 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
6. KCR's Telangana drama shifts to jail. Times of India (2009-11-30). Retrieved on 2016-01-13.
7. Mohammed, Siddique (1 June 2008). "Andhra bypolls: TRS suffers shocking defeat". Rediff News. Archived from the original on 13 February 2021. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
8. "Eatala Rajender justifies budgetary allocations". The Hindu. 14 November 2014. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
9. Rahul, N. (19 February 2019). "Ten new Ministers sworn in". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 1 May 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
10. "Worth over Rs 3 billion, meet the richest candidate in Telangana polls 2018". Business Standard. 21 November 2018. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
11. ^ "Former Telangana Health Minister Etela Rajender Joins BJP". Outlook. 14 June 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
12. "Telangana: Eatala Rajender dropped from State Cabinet". Telangana Today. Archived from the original on 3 May 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
13. ^ "Former Telangana minister Etela Rajender resigns from TRS, likely to join BJP". The Indian Express. 4 June 2021. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
14. "Former TRS minister Etela Rajender resigns as MLA, set to join BJP". Business Standard. 12 June 2021. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
15. "Former Telangana minister Etela Rajender joins BJP". The Indian Express. 14 June 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
16. "Etela Rajender Quits Another Key Post". Sakshi. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
17. P., Sridhar (2 November 2021). "Eatala wins Huzurabad for BJP". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 18 November 2021. Retrieved 7 January 2022.
18. "Telangana election result: KCR wins from Gajwel constituency, loses in Kamareddy". India Today. 3 December 2023.
19. "Huzurabad Assembly Election Results 2023 Highlights: BRS's Kaushik Reddy Padi defeats BJP's Eatala Rajendar with 16873 votes". India Today. 4 December 2023.
20. Election Commission of India (4 June 2024). "2024 Loksabha Elections Results - Malkajgiri". Archived from the original on 18 June 2024. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
21. "Member's Profile - Telangana-Legislature: SRI EATALA RAJENDER". Telangana Legislature. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
22. ^ K, Sammaiah (20 March 2021). "Eatala Rajender Birthday Special: ఉద్యమకారుడి నుంచి రాష్ట్ర మంత్రివరకు.. ప్రజానేత ప్రస్థానం - Minister Eatala Rajender Birthday". TV9 Telugu (in Telugu). Retrieved 12 June 2021.
23. "Seemandhra rulers better than KCR: Etela wife Jamuna!". Telugu360. 30 May 2021. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
24. "Etela Rajender's non-veg feast invitation for OU students faces flak". The Hans India. 19 June 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
25. Bandari, Pawan Kumar (15 November 2019). "Telangana CM KCR, governor and ministers attends Etela Rajender's daughter's marriage in Hyderabad". The Hans India. Retrieved 4 June 2021.

• 1964 births
• Living people
• Telangana MLAs 2014–2018
• Bharat Rashtra Samithi politicians
• Telugu politicians
• People from Medak
• State cabinet ministers of Telangana
• Telangana MLAs 2018–2023
• Andhra Pradesh MLAs 2009–2014
• Andhra Pradesh MLAs 2004–2009
• People from Karimnagar district
• Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Telangana
• Osmania University alumni
• India MPs 2024–2029
• Health ministers of Telangana