The BRS has already drawn flak for vacating the field (by nominating weak candidates) in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and thereby enabling the BJP to win eight out of the 17 seats in contention. Compared to the Assembly polls, the vote share of BRS had dropped significantly in the Lok Sabha elections, held six months later.
Published Feb 10, 2025 | 8:09 PM ⚊ Updated Feb 10, 2025 | 8:33 PM
The BRS is said to be worried that a negative outcome in the MLC election will impact its fight against the ruling party. What the party leadership has, however, not considered is that not choosing to put up a fight is worse than a defeat.
Synopsis: The BRS party’s decision to not participate in the upcoming MLC elections has raised concerns about its recovery after the 2023 Assembly defeat. Despite suggestions from leaders to support independent candidates, KCR dismissed them, fearing a negative outcome could hurt the party. By avoiding the election, BRS risks alienating voters, particularly as the BJP may benefit from its absence.
Is it a strategic step back or a strategic blunder? The decision of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leadership not to participate in the upcoming elections to the Telangana Legislative Council representing graduates and teachers has left its supporters confused.
As is the case with all important matters, the decision to stay away was taken by none other than former chief minister and BRS supremo K Chandrashekar Rao. He wouldn’t care or was dismissive of suggestions from senior leaders that opting out of the contest would send signals that the party is yet to recover from the 2023 shock defeat in the Assembly elections.
Elections have been notified for the Medak-Nizamabad- Adilabad-Karimnagar Graduates constituency and the Teacher constituencies of Medak-Nizamabad-Adilabad-Karimnagar and Warangal-Khammam-Nalgonda. Filing of nominations ended on Monday, 10 February, with the election scheduled for 27 February.
For a party that believes — or at least claims — that the ruling Congress is on a downslide within a year of coming to power, being out of the fray is inexplicable. Two reasons are being cited by BRS leaders for the decision: the party was unprepared for the polls and not actively involved in enrolling the voters either among graduates or teachers, and KCR never really gave serious attention to MLC elections.
For a political party in existence for more than two decades and with 10 years in power, being inactive on the ground ahead of any election is not something to gloat about. Ignoring vocal sections like graduates or teachers, who often set the mood among general voters, is not a great idea either.
According to sources, some leaders suggested that the BRS could at least support good independents in the fray if not fielding its candidates. KCR brushed this, too, aside. Both the Congress and the BJP announced their respective candidates and began the campaign as well.
The BRS is said to be worried that a negative outcome in the MLC election will push it back in the fight against the ruling party. What the party leadership has, however, not considered is that not choosing to put up a fight is worse than defeat.
The BRS has already drawn flak for vacating the field (by putting up weak candidates) in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and thereby enabling the BJP to win eight out of the 17 seats in contention. The Congress won eight. Compared to the Assembly polls, the vote share of BRS had dropped significantly in the Lok Sabha elections, held six months later.
The real trouble for BRS will be if the BJP gains by its absence in the MLC polls. “What will the BRS voter do? Since he cannot vote for the Congress, he will go towards the BJP. That could be more damaging to BRS than Congress winning the seats” a BRS functionary admitted. This is at a time when the sole agenda of the BJP is to slowly but surely diminish regional parties.
Back in 2023, the then-Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy did a similar mistake by being dismissive of the outcome of graduate MLC results which went in favour of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP).
“They are not our voters, anyway. It doesn’t matter,” was how YSRCP leaders reacted, little realising that the mood among graduate voters was symptomatic of the general trend. A year later, the party was decimated.
Likewise, the ensuing MLC elections would have allowed the BRS to test itself. Next in line are elections to local bodies. One has to wait and see how seriously the BRS deals with them.
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
