Kavitha, who served as the honorary president of the Telangana Boggu Gani Karmika Sangham, is now drawing on her past influence within the union to strengthen Singareni Jagruthi.
Published May 28, 2025 | 2:26 PM ⚊ Updated May 28, 2025 | 2:26 PM
BRS MLC K Kavitha. (X)
Synopsis: Some political observers feel Kavitha is attempting to retain political influence in the coal belt. Her focus on youth and Bahujans is a calculated move to rebuild support, but its success hinges on delivering tangible welfare outcomes and navigating the complex political dynamics following the BRS’s defeat in the 2023 elections.
BRS MLC K Kavitha is actively positioning herself as a major force to reckon with in Telangana’s political space, regardless of whether she remains within her party or charts her course independently.
The first indication of this came on Tuesday, 28 May, when she launched Singareni Jagruthi as an affiliate of Telangana Jagruthi, which she heads.
This new outfit is said to have been formed to address issues concerning Singareni employees and workers, functioning more as a social institution than a traditional trade union.
After venting her frustration at those she suspects of undermining her position within the party, Kavitha has been busy executing a strategy to consolidate her presence in regions in Telangana, where she still enjoys considerable influence.
Although speculation is rife that she may float her political outfit on Telangana Formation Day (2 June), there are no clear signals of her intention to exit the BRS. According to sources, she is not contemplating a departure from the party, contrary to the stream of speculative stories making the rounds.
In her bid to rise independently, Kavitha appears to be leveraging the brand she built with Telangana Jagruthi—a socio-cultural organisation that played a pivotal role in the statehood movement—to expand her footprint in areas where she is already well-known, and to make inroads into new regions.
The launch of Singareni Jagruthi is being seen as a decisive move to position herself as a counterweight to her brother and BRS Working President, KT Rama Rao (KTR). Her ambition to emerge as a powerful leader is perceived as a push to maintain parity with KTR.
She reportedly sought the position of party working president should KTR be elevated to party president by KCR as part of a succession plan. Kavitha wants to ensure she remains a strong contender for the role if and when that transition occurs.
The speculation around KTR’s possible elevation gained traction after senior party leader T Harish Rao publicly stated he would have no objection to working under KTR. This marked a significant shift from his earlier stance, where he dismissed talk of KCR stepping down as “hypothetical and irrelevant.”
Now, Kavitha is focusing her attention on the Singareni coal belt, which spans 350 km across the Pranahita–Godavari Valley and holds coal reserves of approximately 8,791 million tonnes. The Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) operates 17 opencast and 22 underground mines across six districts in Telangana—Bhadradri Kothagudem, Khammam, Jayashankar Bhupalpally, Mancherial, Peddapalli, and Komaram Bheem Asifabad—employing nearly 42,000 workers.
Kavitha, who served as the honorary president of the Telangana Boggu Gani Karmika Sangham (TBGKS) from 2017 to March 2024, is now drawing on her past influence within the union to strengthen Singareni Jagruthi. During her tenure, she built a strong rapport with SCCL workers, leading union campaigns during the 2012 and 2017 trade union elections.
She is now drawing heavily on those relationships, appointing coordinators for all 11 operational areas of SCCL, and aiming to connect with grassroots workers through her existing network.
As TBGKS honorary president, Kavitha had led prominent protests, most notably the 2020 strike against coal mine privatisation, where she organised demonstrations and a 24-hour strike. She also advocated for crucial worker benefits, including raising the retirement age to 61 and reinstating the dependent job scheme.
Now, through Singareni Jagruthi, Kavitha is pushing for similar demands, such as the implementation of the CBSE syllabus in Singareni schools, access to free corporate healthcare, upgraded labour colonies, and halting the privatisation of Side Discharge Loader (SDL) operations in opencast mines. Her apparent aim is to organise large-scale protests and rallies to gain legitimacy for Singareni Jagruthi as a socio-political platform.
TBGKS officially severed ties with the BRS in March 2024 after the Congress government took power in the state. However, Kavitha maintains working relationships with many union leaders. The separation of TBGKS from party affiliations also works in Kavitha’s favour, as it allows her to build her own political identity without direct association with the BRS.
Kavitha is keen on Singareni Jagruthi coordinating with TBGKS to address workers’ issues, utilising the union’s established infrastructure and influence. This collaboration enables her to maintain relevance in the coal belt while positioning her new outfit as a welfare-focused, youth-oriented initiative.
Her leadership of Telangana Jagruthi, which she founded in 2006, gave her considerable experience in mobilising communities through cultural initiatives such as Bathukamma celebrations and skill-development programmes. That experience bolstered her public image as a promoter of Telangana’s identity and workers’ rights—an image she carried into her role in TBGKS.
She is now applying the Telangana Jagruthi model to Singareni Jagruthi, focusing on youth and Bahujan (backward classes) inclusion. Her appointment of grassroots coordinators and plans to establish a women’s wing reflect this approach. By presenting Singareni Jagruthi as an extension of her cultural and social activism, she aims to reassert her influence in the coal belt. With an anti-Congress and anti-BJP stance, Kavitha appears to be rallying SCCL’s workforce against what she describes as anti-labour welfare policies and aggressive privatisation—a recurring concern in the Singareni region.
She is framing Singareni Jagruthi as a defender of SCCL’s public sector status and workers’ rights. She has accused the Congress government of pushing SCCL toward decline through corruption and anti-worker policies, and seeks to mobilise coal belt workers and youth to counter the current administration’s agenda.
However, the road ahead may not be as smooth as it seems. TBGKS is now a completely apolitical union, and Kavitha was relieved of her honorary president role in line with this new stance. The union’s detachment from political parties could present challenges, as sections of the workforce may view Kavitha’s efforts with skepticism, given her known BRS affiliation and political ambitions.
Some observers see this as a backdoor attempt to retain political influence in the coal belt. Her focus on youth and Bahujans is a calculated move to rebuild support, but its success hinges on delivering tangible welfare outcomes and navigating the complex political dynamics following the BRS’s defeat in the 2023 elections.
A BRS leader said, “Right now, Kavitha is trying to assert herself within the BRS. She knows what might happen if she leaves. She wants to stay in BRS and fight her way to the top.”
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
