Hyderabad: Will Telangana once again witness early elections like it did the last time in 2018? That seems to be where the wind is blowing if Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) insiders are to be believed. Saisat.com has learnt that chief minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) might advance the Assembly polls once again and as early as 2022 December itself.
Given the current political situation, and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) becoming the main contender, TRS supremo KCR might go to polls by December itself, to have an edge, sources from the TRS told Siasat.com. The chief minister had dissolved his government in September 2018, months before its term was supposed to end in April-May.
While it was earlier believed that he might go for polls around April-May 2023 instead, there are indications from within that the state elections might be advanced to as early as December this year itself. Given KCR’s record of advancing polls like last time, it won’t be surprising if it happens again.
According to analysts, KCR had advanced the election last time to avoid its clash with the general elections, which were held in April-May 2019 (the state elections were held first along with it in 2014, and were slated to be held at the same time in 2019). The plan worked, and the TRS handsomely won 88 out of 119 seats (12 Congress and two TDP MLAs joined the TRS later).
The Congress, which had an alliance with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), and other parties, could win only 19 seats. TDP bagged two. The BJP then could win just one seat (it won 5 in the 2014 polls).
While the TRS has the muscle and money power to go for early elections, the opposition BJP still does not have strong candidates for all seats. And that is what KCR seems to be banking on: the unpreparedness of the opposition. However, it has also been learnt that not all MLAs in the party might be on board with early elections again.
In the last few years, the BJP won the Dubbaka and Huzurabad by-elections. However, the latter is represented by ex-TRS leader Eatala Rajender, who joined the BJP after being sacked as the health minister by KCR last year. The Huzurabad win however is seen more as a win for Eatala, rather than for the BJP.
Moreover, the recently announced 80,000 job notifications is also another indication that KCR may be trying to go for early polls till the wind is blowing in his favour. During the Huzurabad by-election, he had also announced the Dalit Bandhu scheme, under which all eligible Dalit candidates will receive Rs. 10 lakh as financial assistance from the state government.
“Obviously the BJP does not have the depth that the TRS or Congress has in Telangana. KCR may be thinking that he does not want to give the BJP time to prepare as well. If the opposition is weak and divided, then he could go for early polls,” said political analyst Palwai Raghavendra Reddy.
He added that the biggest problem any government faces is with youngsters who need employment opportunities. “The farmer community is very happy in Telangana. Now that KCR has announced new job notifications as well, he might be considering early elections. It will be in the TRS’s favour,” Reddy opined.
