Etela Rajender

Rajender joined TRS in 2003.^[3] He is recognised as a student leader with a left-wing ideology.^[4]

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.^[5] He served as the TRS floor leader in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly.^[6] He resigned as the MLA in 2008 and was re-elected as an MLA from the same constituency in the 2008 by-election.^[5][7]

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.^[5]

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.^[8]

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.^[9] As part of the 2018 election's declaration of assets by contestants, he has furnished ₹42.41 crore (equivalent to ₹57 crore or US$5.9 million in 2023) in assets and was the richest among other ministers.^[10]

In May 2021, Rajender, along with his followers and Jamuna Hatcheries, faced allegations of land encroachments in Achampet and Hakimpet villages in Medak district.^[4][11] His ministerial portfolio was removed and he was subsequently dismissed from the state cabinet.^[4][12] Subsequently, on 4 June, he resigned from TRS.^[13] On 12 June, he resigned as MLA.^[14]

On 14 June 2021, Rajender joined the BJP in the presence of BJP leaders Dharmendra Pradhan and G. Kishan Reddy.^[15][11] He has also resigned as the president of Nampally Exhibition Society, which he held since 2014.^[16] He contested the by-election held later that year and won as the MLA.^[17]

In 2023 assembly elections, he contested from Huzurabad and Gazwel as BJP candidate and lost in both places to BRS candidates.^[18][19] 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.^[20][21]

Etela Rajender topped with raising 80 questions as Lok Sabha member from Telangana in participating in debates during the Parliament sessions between 24 June 2024 to 4 April 2025.^[22]

Etela was born on 20 March 1964 into a Mudiraju family in Kamalapur, Hanumakonda district of present-day Telangana. His father, Sri Mallaiah ( or Pedda Mallaiah ) , was a respected figure who passed away in August 2022. ^[23][24][13] He has studied B.Sc. from Osmania University in 1984.^[24] He married Jamuna, who owns Jamuna Hatcheries. They have two children, Nithin Rajender (son) and Neeta Rajender (daughter) . ^[25] .^[26][27]