BRS Not Keen On Pre-Poll Alliance, May Consider Post Polls
BRS only has the option to consider Left parties for alliances as all other parties in the state are strongly in its opposition
Hyderabad: The ruling BRS is learnt not to be keen on a pre-poll alliance for the upcoming Assembly polls scheduled for December, according to party sources.
BRS president and Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao is believed to have asked party’s all 104 MLAs, besides party leaders and workers, to be prepared to contest all 119 Assembly seats. The party would consider post-poll alliances if needed, he is believed to have said.
In 2014 and 2018, the party, then TRS, contested all seats without alliance and formed the government on both occasions. The party is aiming for a ‘hat trick’ and wants to achieve the feat on its own, sources said.
They said that further, the BRS only has the option to consider Left parties for alliances as all other parties in the state are strongly in its opposition.
In the Munugode Assembly bypoll held in November 2022, the BRS formed a pre-poll alliance with the Left to defeat the BJP and succeeded, but the party is unlikely to revisit the alliance for the Assembly polls, even as the Chief Minister had then stated that the BRS’s electoral understanding with the Left parties will not be confined to just Munugode.
Seven months on since the Munugode poll, there has been no initiative on the Chief Minister’s part to ally with the Left parties, whose leaders are believed to be upset with the ruling party for failing to cooperate in devising a joint action plan to take on the BJP in Telangana state.
The CPI and the CPM already reached an agreement over jointly contesting the Assembly polls and stepped up activities in Khammam district and a few other constituencies in other districts, where it has a considerable political base.
Left leaders, including CPI state secretary Kunamneni Sambasiva Rao and CPM state secretary Tammineni Veerabhadram, have openly expressed their ire at the BRS leadership for ignoring them. They are giving statements that Left parties will be forced to look at the Congress and other parties opposing BJP for an alliance for upcoming Assembly polls.
Recently, CPI national secretary K. Narayana stated that they have got ‘new options’ for poll tie-ups, following Congress’ victory in the Karnataka Assembly polls.
Sources said that the main issue is that the Left parties are seeking a majority of the seats in the undivided Khammam district, besides a few seats in the erstwhile undivided Nalgonda and Warangal districts, while the BRS is reluctant to accede to the request.
However, in the event of Left Parties winning a few seats in upcoming Assembly polls and a hung Assembly ensuing, the BRS leadership will remain open for a post-poll alliance with Left parties to form the government.
But, it would be a first, as there has been no instance of Telugu voters throwing a hung Assembly so far.