TRS woos TDP MLAs; KCR plans to claim more seats from Congress

Hyderabad: If one goes by the plans of the TRS?to extend its political base in Telangana, there will be little that the Congress will get if it intends to enter into an alliance.

With the induction of Jukkal MLA Hanumanth Shinde from the Telugu Desam, the TRS has 22 legislators out of 119 in Telangana.  According to TRS insiders, the party hopes to attract 20 more MLAs, all belonging to the TD.

TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao is adamant that there will be no talk of an alliance with the Congress until the Telangana Bill is passed in Parliament. 

There are ample indications that Rao’s tough talk has gone down well with the other party leaders, who believe that there is not much enthusiasm or support in Telangana for the Congress, even though the latter claims credit for creating the state.

“The people believe that KCR is responsible for creating Telangana state. They do not trust the Congress,” said senior MLA T. Harish Rao, pointing out that after the announcement on Telangana, “not a single MLA from another party has joined the Congress. They are joining us.”

The TRS wants to capture as many MLAs as possible from the TD and other parties to expand its base in all the five north Telangana districts. This will seal the fate of several Congressmen in those districts who are aspiring for tickets. Except for Nirmal, all the other general seats in Adilabad district are now held by the TRS. It’s the same in Nizamabad.

Assuming there will be alliance talks after the T Bill is passed in Parliament just ahead of the 2014 general elections, the TRS says that it would lay claim to 75 seats. “Our strength would increase to 42-45 by next February. These will be considered our sitting seats,” said an important party source.

Senior TRS MLA K.T. Rama Rao said, “At present we are not inclined to any adjustments or merger with the Congress. We want to prove our credentials in getting the Telangana state first.”