Will pink prevail? State waits with bated breath for answer

HYDERABAD: After a wait of more than a month, the results for the Lok Sabha elections are finally at hand. Undoubtedly, of three main parties in the State — Congress, TRS and BJP — it is the pink party that has the burden of expectations. The ruling party’s resounding performance in the recent Assembly elections has made it the hot favourite, with many expecting an encore from it in the form of a great show in the Lok Sabha polls.  TRS had gone into the polls with the slogan ‘Karu (car), Padahaaru (16 LS seats) and Sarkaru (government in Delhi)’. However, this plan — of winning all seats, except Hyderabad, in the State — might not come true for the party as most exit polls predict a massive victory for the BJP-led NDA government. This would, in theory, not leave any chance for a non-BJP and non-Congress government coming to power at the Centre. 

The State unit of Congress appears to have been unable to stop the TRS juggernaut as most of its leaders remained demoralised as the pink party kept snatching away MLAs from it. As many as 11 Congress MLAs, out of 19, have switched to TRS since December 2018. In case there are more defections, the party might end up losing its Opposition status in the Assembly altogether. Those who remain do not seem very optimistic about their chances of doing well. The idea of another five years in the wilderness, away from power, has brought down morale even further. 

If Congress does not improve its performance in these elections, the party high command is expected to revamp the State unit entirely. AICC chief Rahul Gandhi might want to infuse new blood into the Pradesh Congress Committee by choosing for it a new leader. On the saffron side of things, while BJP cadres across the country are waiting to crack open the champagne bottle, in Telangana they are not sure of the road ahead. State party leaders hope the Modi wave will have swept through Telangana as well, like it might have elsewhere in the country. 

The big tickets
Irrespective of the results, people of the State will have an interesting day ahead of them with exciting contests expected at a few key constituencies. In Nizamabad, Kalvakuntla Kavitha, daughter of Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, is seeking re-election. It should have been a cakewalk for Kavitha but with 185 candidates in the fray, and with reports of Congress candidate Madhu Yashki Goud having supported BJP’s D Aravind, the result is anyone’s guess. 

In Nalgonda, it is Pradesh Congress Committee president N Uttam Kumar Reddy himself that is seeking election. If TRS wins this seat it will be a victory for it on two fronts. First, a TRS candidate has never won from Nalgonda. Second, defeating Uttam Kumar Reddy will be a major upset for Congress cadres. This is what ultimately might lead to Reddy being shown the door.  An interesting contest is expected at Malkajgiri as well, where Congress’ A Revanth Reddy and TRS’ Marri Rajashekar Reddy are pitted against each other. 

Revanth, considered a firebrand leader for his relentless criticism of TRS and Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, is looking for redemption after having lost Kodangal Assembly segment a few months ago. TRS has not won in this seat till date. Here too, a TRS victory would equate to conquering new territory and, as a bonus, silencing Revanth Reddy.