The transformation of Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) to a national party, Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS), has drawn the attention of all the political parties across the country in general and of those in the Telugu states, in particular.
According to a report in Deccan Chronicle, the Telugu Desam is planning to revive the party in Telangana following Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao’s move. The TDP had been pushed into the oblivion in Telangana during the last Assembly elections held in 2018. The party seniors are reportedly getting in touch with those who had switched loyalties to other parties and woo them back into the party.
In fact, the TDP is in dire straits in Andhra Pradesh and needs strategic planning to regain the lost glory. With many of the TDP leaders jumping the fence and joining the ruling YCP a couple of years ago, the party lacks capable leaders. Time and again, the YCP leaders have been terming Naidu ‘old and outdated’ while his son and MLC N. Lokesh seems to be lacking the political acumen to establish the ‘connect with the people again’ and carry forward his father’s legacy.
In such a situation, Naidu needs to focus on Andhra Pradesh but KCR’s move has prompted the TDP boss to look for prospects in the neigbouring state, where it had been very strong at one time. The ruling TRS poached all the TDP leaders on a mission mode after stoking up the Telangana sentiment, which Naidu had been fighting against tooth and nail. However, the TRS could easily drive out Naidu branding him ‘anti-Telangana’ and as ‘an outsider’.
Now, after the TRS has shed its regional sentiment by changing the name and stature of the party, Naidu feels there is some space for the TDP to benefit from it.
According to news reports, Naidu had met with ex- MLC Kasani Gyaneshwar and proposed that he look into the party affairs in Telangana. It is learnt that Gyaneshwar, being one among the wealthy politicians in the state, was also contacted by the BJP and TRS leaders.
While a few political analysts are of the opinion that the TDP could forge an alliance with the BJP like in 2014 elections and benefit from it, a few others ruled out the truck and said it would be the Congress-TDP combo that would fight the 2023 polls in Telangana.
Reportedly, Naidu is determined to revive the party in Telangana and has even told the Telangana TDP leaders that he would frequently visit the party office and do the needful to make the party more visible to the public, ahead of the Assembly elections.
Now, the public has to wait and watch what would be the poll plank of the Telangana-TDP.