He will campaign against Naidu in Andhra Pradesh polls next year.
HYDERABAD: TRS chief and newly re-elected Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) has vowed to take revenge on his Andhra counterpart and TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu through a “return gift” by campaigning against him in the coming Assembly and Lok Sabha elections in the state next April/May.
KCR is likely to campaign for YSR Congress leader Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, the principal opposition against Naidu in Andhra Pradesh. “Naidu has campaigned against me in the Telangana Assembly elections and spoke all nonsense against me and my party. I have to serve him a return gift and I will do it ‘pucca’ in Andhra elections,” said KCR in his maiden media conference after the results on 11 December.
KCR’s announcement that he would actively campaign in Andhra elections has already stirred the politics of the state. He was right in his claims that he was getting thousands of phone calls and message from Andhra urging him to remove Naidu from power. There are some fans’ clubs and supporters of KCR in several Andhra towns and villages.
If KCR campaigns against Naidu in Andhra elections, the bitterness between the two that has been a running theme for almost two decades (ever since KCR quit TDP in April 2001 and formed his TRS) will take a new turn and heat up the politics in both states. Naidu’s political opponents like YSR Congress, Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena and BJP have welcomed KCR’s statement.
KCR was particularly angry over Naidu’s recent road shows in Telangana in which he had claimed that it was he who had developed the city of Hyderabad. When KCR had questioned Naidu’s claims as the city of Hyderabad was built over 400 years ago by Quli Qutub Shah kings, the latter clarified that he had only developed the new city of Cyberabad, the IT hub on the western part of Hyderabad.
KCR was also livid over Naidu’s claim that the TRS chief was a product of TDP and his own protege (KCR worked for three years in the Naidu Cabinet between 1996 and 1999). Now KCR plans to expose the “role” of Naidu in unseating late Chief Minister N.T. Rama Rao and in the cash-for-vote scam. There are some criminal cases against Naidu related to that scam in Telangana.
KCR and TRS leaders had alleged during the elections that Naidu had arranged Rs 500 crore for the Mahakutami candidates and issued full page ads in leading Telugu dailies and news channels for two weeks. Of course, this was refuted by the Mahakutami leaders.
KCR has also announced that he would work against Naidu’s plans to form a national level front to unseat Prime Minister Narendra Modi by cobbling together non-BJP parties. KCR now would strive for a new federal front, without both Congress and BJP. “Anyway, Chandrababu’s TDP will lose power in AP and TDP won’t even get two MPs,” KCR said.
KCR is sure of winning all the 17 Lok Sabha seats, including the Hyderabad seat of AIMIM, and play an important role in national politics after the elections. KCR hasn’t spelled out the details of the parties that will join his non-Congress, non-BJP conglomeration, but his close aides said that he was sure of assembling some major parties in the coming months.
Naidu had reacted to KCR’s plans to campaign against him in Andhra by saying that in India anyone can go anywhere and campaign for whichever party they like. He told the public at a meeting in Prakasam district in Andhra on Thursday that KCR had joined hands with his opponents—Jagan, Pawan and BJP— and hatched a conspiracy against him.
Naidu also cautioned the public against KCR coming to Andhra Pradesh as the latter had strongly opposed the grant of special status to the state after the bifurcation of the combined Andhra Pradesh. “How can you believe what KCR says as he is our enemy and opponent?” Naidu asked the people. Some TDP ministers, too, attacked KCR for planning to campaign against Naidu in the coming elections.
However, Jagan and Pawan seem to be warming up to KCR and they greeted the latter on his stellar victory in Telangana elections this week.
YSR Congress leader Ambati Rambabu said that Naidu seemed to be afraid of KCR coming to Andhra. BJP leaders, too, welcomed KCR to Andhra and said that it would damage the prospects of Naidu’s TDP.