National politics, LS plan after TS win: KCR

Hyderabad: BRS president and Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao hinted at shifting his focus to national politics and the Lok Sabha elections after the Assembly polls in Telangana state later this year. He expressed confidence in BRS' prospects in national politics, following a successful bid for a third consecutive term in the Assembly elections.

Addressing the media at Telangana Bhavan on Monday, Rao clarified that the BRS has deliberately refrained from aligning with either the NDA or the I.N.D.I.A. The party’s objective is to maintain equidistance from both the Congress and the BJP, as both have, in his view, underperformed despite governing the country for seven decades.

Regarding his role in national politics, Chandrashekar Rao remarked, "Our immediate priority now is to focus on the Assembly polls in Telangana state, which are just three months away. After the Assembly polls, we will have ample time to shift our focus to national politics. There will be a five-month window before the Lok Sabha polls. During this period, I will tour several states to strengthen the BRS and concentrate on national politics and Lok Sabha polls."

He dismissed allegations that the BRS is a proxy for either the Congress or the BJP, stating, "BJP leaders claim we are the B-team of the Congress, while the Congress alleges we are the B-team of the BJP. When I visited Maharashtra to bolster the BRS, NCP leader Sharad Pawar labelled us as the B-team of the BJP. However, shortly thereafter, his own party joined the BJP government in Maharashtra. I can only describe those who label the BRS as the B-team of another party as 'paagal' (fools)."

Further, Chandrashekar Rao criticised senior BJP leader Prakash Javadekar for repeatedly levelling corruption charges against the BRS government regarding the Kaleshwaram project. He questioned the duration of BJP leaders' persistence with the same allegations, spanning five years, despite the rejection of these claims by the people of Telangana state, he asserted, "They have failed to learn their lesson even after being rebuffed by the people."