Central to the upcoming debates are interstate water disputes, particularly over the Krishna and Godavari rivers, which have long been flashpoints between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
Published Dec 29, 2025 | 8:00 AM ⚊ Updated Dec 29, 2025 | 8:00 AM
Telangana Assembly. (File picture)
Synopsis: As the Telangana Legislative Assembly convenes for its winter session, the political atmosphere in the state is charged with anticipation and tension. It is poised to be a high-stakes arena where long-simmering disputes over water rights, irrigation projects, and governance failures are expected to erupt into heated debates.
As the Telangana Legislative Assembly convenes for its winter session on Monday, 29 December, the political atmosphere in the state is charged with anticipation and tension.
The session, set to commence at 10.30 am on Monday, is poised to be a high-stakes arena where long-simmering disputes over water rights, irrigation projects, and governance failures are expected to erupt into heated debates.
Former chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), the BRS supremo, may, in all likelihood, return to active legislative participation. If he does, it would mark his first major legislative engagement since the party’s defeat in the 2023 Assembly elections.
Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy of the Congress has openly dared KCR to debate key issues in the irrigation sector, indicating that the session could “raise the temperature” and serve as a litmus test for the evolving political landscape ahead of near-term electoral challenges and the long-term 2028 Assembly elections.
The backdrop to this session is rooted in Telangana’s turbulent political history. Formed in 2014 after a prolonged agitation for statehood, Telangana remained under KCR’s BRS rule for nearly a decade. Under KCR, the state saw ambitious projects such as the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme — touted as the world’s largest — aimed at transforming arid regions into fertile farmlands.
Ever since the collapse of the Medigadda barrage, a key component of the Kaleshwaram project, in 2023, the Congress — after coming to power in December that year—has been using it as a symbol of the BRS’s governance failures. The 2023 elections marked a seismic political shift: the Congress swept to power with 64 seats, the BRS was reduced to 39, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) held on to eight.
Central to the upcoming debates are interstate water disputes, particularly over the Krishna and Godavari rivers, which have long been flashpoints between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
KCR, in a recent press conference, lambasted the Congress government as “useless” for allegedly surrendering Telangana’s water rights to Andhra Pradesh, accusing it of failing to halt illegal diversions and constructions by the neighbouring state.
He vowed to fight for Telangana’s entitlements, positioning himself as the guardian of the State’s interests—a narrative that resonated strongly during the statehood movement.
The Palamuru–Ranga Reddy Lift Irrigation Scheme (PRLIS), another BRS-era initiative, is also under scrutiny, with KCR alleging that the current regime is undermining it through neglect and policy reversals. Congress leaders, including Revanth Reddy, have dismissed these claims as political opportunism, urging KCR to prove his allegations on the floor of the Assembly rather than through media soundbites.
The session’s agenda includes discussions on water shares and possible resolutions against Andhra Pradesh’s actions, with the House adjourning briefly over the New Year before resuming on January 2.
Adding fuel to the fire is the controversial phone-tapping scandal from the BRS regime, in which opposition leaders allege widespread surveillance of critics, including journalists and politicians.
This issue, already under judicial probe, is likely to resurface. The Kaleshwaram project—mired in inquiries over structural failures and alleged financial irregularities — is also expected to dominate the proceedings.
The BRS is sharpening its knives to go for the Congress’s jugular — not only on PRLIS but also on what it terms the government’s “failure” to safeguard Telangana’s water rights in disputes with its sibling state of Andhra Pradesh.
KCR’s warning that the BRS would “flay the party alive” has set the tone for a spirited offensive against the Congress. The party is seeking to regain the upper hand and lift the sagging morale of its workers in the wake of back-to-back electoral reverses.
The only silver lining for the BRS is the green shoots it has seen in its performance in certain districts during the recent panchayat elections.
In several districts, it won a considerable number of sarpanch posts, even where it finished second overall. The BRS is keen on building on these gains — not only to accelerate its campaign against the Congress but also to make its cadres battle-ready for future electoral contests.
For Revanth Reddy, the session is an opportunity to consolidate the Congress’s gains. The party has performed well in recent gram panchayat elections, winning a majority in rural polls conducted in phases.
Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president Mahesh Kumar Goud hailed these victories as evidence of public trust, even as pockets of BRS strength point to lingering loyalty in certain regions.
Yet, challenges persist: fiscal stress from welfare guarantees and any lapse in rollout could present the BRS with an opening. Already, the party has enough grist for the mill—farmer suicides and the urea shortage.
The BJP, though a smaller player, adds another layer of complexity to the political landscape. The saffron party finished a distant third in the panchayat elections, though it sees this as an improvement over its previous performance and maintains that it is on course to emerge as an alternative to the Congress.
While it still has miles to go to reach that goal, it remains a fly in the ointment for the Congress, buoyed by its position as the leader of the ruling coalition at the Centre.
For the Congress, a strong defence of water and welfare could cement its rural stronghold, but any perceived weakness may fuel anti-incumbency. The BRS, under KCR, needs a compelling narrative to regain momentum, leveraging emotive issues such as state pride to rebuild cadre morale.
The BJP’s rise will depend on how aggressively it targets both the Congress and the BRS. Public sentiment, as reflected in recent local body polls, indicates a Congress lead — but with vulnerabilities in pockets.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
