BJP bets on Telangana, other parties claim not yet

Hyderabad: The BJP’s determination to create a stronghold in the state is worrying the TRS, but the Congress says it is confident that the BJP will not succeed in emerging as the main Opposition party as it does not have a rural vote bank.

The state Congress leadership says it has an  organisational structure in every nook and corner of Telangana, wher-eas the BJP has such a structure in only 20 per cent of villages.

Though it could win only one of the 119 seats in the Assembly elections held in December last year, the BJP is upbeat about its prospe-cts in Telangana after bagging four of the 17 constituencies in the recent LS elections.

The BJP had a 7.15 per cent vote share in the state in the December Assembly polls. This increased to 19.65 per cent in the Lok Sabha elections. The Congress, though it won only three seats, had a vote share of 29.79 per cent. The TRS retained power in the state with a vote share of 47.38 per cent in the Assembly elections and won nine seats in the LS polls with a vote share of 41.71 per cent.

Congress leaders say the BJP’s hype about growing in the state is false and misleading.

The ruling TRS leaders, including its working president K.T. Rama Rao, say they still consider the Congress as their main opponent in the state, and the BJP is making a hue and cry about emerging as the strongest Opposition is just false and baseless.

MIM president Asaduddin Owaisi said there is also a strong regional feeling which the BJP can’t change.