Behind the stellar show of Telangana Congress

The stellar show of the Congress Party in Telangana is queering the minds of many. It is much in contrast to its dismal performance in four other northern states that went to polls simultaneously.

The Congress victory in Telangana owed very little to itself. Its bumper harvest came in as a windfall from the so-called Telangana Gandhi, K Chandrashekhar Rao. As the maker of Telangana, he was extolled to skies.

But the same people began to look for alternatives when the euphoria generated by the Telangana sentiment started ebbing out. People have realised that adept leaders prefer to act as political dynamics demand.

They found a yawning gap between the words and deeds of KRC. He proved to be low on delivery during his second term as the Chief Minister, and he had to make too many compromises being at the helm of the affairs of the state.

In fact, the rise and fall of KCR were his own making.  He was crushed under his own weight. The BJP’s love-hate relationship with the BRS also made KCR pay a heavy price.

His campaign was more focused on his consistent denial of being the B-team for the BJP than on his party’s electoral prospects. The BRS and BJP played together in the hands of the Congress.

The BJP’s strong presence in Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation limits helped in sharing the anti-incumbency vote against KCR. This is the sole reason, while the Congress party had a blank in Hyderabad city.

The rest of Telangana would have given the same result had the BJP projected itself as a strong contender. The BJP was looked upon as the right alternative to the BRS as long as Bandi Sanjay, MP, spearheaded the party as its chief.   

But for reasons best known to the BJP bigwigs, Sanjay was dumped ahead of the polls. His exist was seen as the fall out of a political understanding between the BJP and BRS. Sanjay was loud-mouthed, a trait that matched verbal flamboyance of KCR.

Sanjay wanted to see KCR’s daughter, Kavitha behind bars, alleging that she had a role in the Delhi liquor scam. There is no denying the fact that the Congress has demonstrated a rare show of unity in Telangana. The new PCC president could bring together all the groups in the party and help galvanise the support of the masses.