For BRS, April 27, its Foundation Day, is crucial this year. As Assembly elections are less than seven months away, the party has decided to review the battle readiness of its leaders and cadres on this day.
The party has already stolen a march over other parties by organising “Athmeeya sammelans” in several Assembly segments in the state.
Also read: BRS to organise state wide ‘Athmeeya sammelans’
Even though the Foundation Day arrives ahead of the deadline set for the completion of the sammelans, which is May end, the BRS leadership is getting inputs on the status of the party from all the segments.
To set the tone for the Foundation Day, IT Minister KT Rama Rao, or KTR, has already sensitised the party leaders at the district and constituency level to begin preparations from 25 April itself.
He said recently that BRS supremo and chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao, or KCR, was impressed with the way the sammelans were being conducted. On 27 April, KCR would set the ball rolling with a focused attack on BRS’ rivals.
KCR, often called the Machiavelli of Telangana politics, is reviewing the situation regularly and planning his moves to outwit his opponents — the Congress and the BJP — in the electoral battlefield.
But before that, he is readying his army — party workers — for the final showdown.
And once the preparations are done, the poll bugle will be sounded at a mega public meeting in Warangal on 10 October.
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‘Bury your differences’
KCR is understood to have asked the party leaders in all districts to infuse more zest into the Athmeeya sammelans by sinking differences, if any among them, and working shoulder-to-shoulder to help the party score a hat trick in the elections.
Accordingly, ministers and state-level leaders have fanned out to all the constituencies and are holding Athmeeya sammelans with local leaders. They are busy renewing the party’s connection with the people.
Though in most of the constituencies, the sammelans are going on to the satisfaction of the party leadership, in some constituencies, internal squabbles are spoiling the efforts.
Though they are not on a scale the party leadership cannot control, they, however, warrant immediate attention.
Also read: Telangana CM calls for ‘kisan’ government at BRS public meeting
For instance, in two districts, Khammam and Mahabubnagar, there are leaders who have vowed to upset the BRS applecart, come what may, after they were suspended from the party.
They might be joining either the BJP or the Congress, but while doing so they might take a portion of the party’s support base unless the party leadership take an immediate interest.
The BRS strongly suspects former MP Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy was responsible for the rout of the party in the last Assembly elections in Khammam district. The BRS lost all but one seat.
As a punishment, he was denied a Parliament ticket in 2019 from Khammam, despite a recommendation from YSRCP chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy (he had not yet become the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh at that time) which further widened the distance between him and KCR.
Also read: Khammam in focus, Congress and BJP vie to lure Srinivasa Reddy
Those working against BRS
Now that he has been suspended, Srinivasa Reddy, who is seething with rage, is determined to see the last of the BRS rather than work for his rise in the bullring of politics.
Similarly, in the Mahabubnagar district, former minister Jupally Krishna Rao, who has become a persona non grata for KCR after his flaming row with incumbent MLA of Kollapur B Harsha Vardhan Reddy, is examining his options to settle scores with the BRS.
Jupally might be able to create a lot of discomfiture to the BRS in Mahabubnagar district, regardless of which party he finds himself in.
In Tandur in the Rangareddy district, BRS MLC Patnam Maehnder Reddy does not see eye to eye with local MLA Pilot Rohit Reddy, who defected to the pink party from the Congress.
There is already a buzz that BJP is trying to land Mahender Reddy, though there is no confirmation yet.
The BRS is facing such pin-pricks in several constituencies, but ignoring them might prove to be costly for the party.
Though they are not problems that cannot be surmounted, it is felt that they should not be left as festering sores, at the same time.
The problem of dissidence in varying degrees has been reported in about 30 to 40 constituencies in the state. The party leadership hopes to find a remedy for them with its time-tested carrot-and-stick policy.
