BRS leaders keen on avoiding split in party's strong Dalit vote bank

ADILABAD: The BRS party is focusing on keeping its Dalit vote bank intact and keen on avoiding any possible split in these votes in the upcoming assembly polls.

The party has activated its SC wing leaders and asked them to be extremely alert to ensure that parties like the BSP, the Dharma Samaj Party (DSP) and the RPI (Republican Party of India) did not have a finger in the Dalit pie.

The BRS leadership reckons that the winning margins for its candidates might come down in the next elections as major political parties and even unpopular parties would field their candidates.

Some social organisations are also readying to field their candidates to highlight the problems some segments faced, like the Telangana’s Gulf workers and the returnees.

To keep the BRS’s Dalit vote bank intact, the party SC wing would list out the municipal ward and village-wise implementation of the welfare schemes for the Dalits. Party leaders would reach out to the Dalits in a door-to-door campaign and explain to them how the BRS under the leadership of KCR cared for the Dalit families.

BRS leaders would request the Dalit families not to get confused with the new political parties that are approaching them with some Dalit agenda and talking a lot about Dalits empowerment. “Instead, associate with the BRS and vote for its candidates by keeping your faith in KCR’s leadership,” they would be advised in the door-to door campaigns.         

The BRS leadership feels any split in the Dalit votes would be disadvantageous to the ruling party and advantageous to the Congress or the BJP as the case may be in each constituency.

Shailender Waghmare, BRS Adilabad town SC wing president, while speaking at the Athmeeya Sammelanam in Adilabad town under the leadership of MLA Jogu Ramanna, appealed to the party leaders and cadre to ensure that “there will not be any split in the Dalit vote base of the BRS party. Notably, BSP candidate Andoju Shankara Chary got 4,146 votes in the Munugode elections. This has alerted the BRS.   

The SC wing chief said if Dalits vote for other parties, it could mean that the BRS candidates may lose the polls with small margins in the assembly elections.
Waghmare claimed that KCR was the only leader who did not divide the Dalits on the Mala-Madiga lines. Instead, KCR untied the Dalits and worked for their overall development, he said.