Hyderabad: The TDP-BJP break-up in Andhra Pradesh has given scope for consolidation of the anti-TRS vote bank in Telangana.
The Congress, which is the main Opposition party, is seriously attempting to bring together all parties opposing the TRS with the aim of defeating the Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao led party in the 2019 elections.
Secret negotiations are being held with the Telugu Desam, TJAC chairman Professor Kodandaram’s newly-formed Telangana Jana Samithi (TJS), CPI, CPM and the Bahujan Left Front (BLF).
The BLF was formed in January this year and comprises of 28 organisations representing diverse social groups and progressive parties led by the CPM. The Congress feels that since all these parties have the common goal of dethroning the TRS, it would be better to fight elections under one platform as otherwise the anti-TRS vote would split between all these parties if contested separately, and this will ultimately benefit the TRS to retain power in the 2019 elections.
Congress leaders brought this issue to the notice of the party high command six months after Rahul Gandhi took over as AICC chief replacing Sonia Gandhi in December 2017.
Mr Gandhi is said to have approved the proposal and has asked senior party leaders to work out modalities for bringing like-minded parties together to take on the TRS.
However, the attempts so far did not make headway as the Telugu Desam had a tie-up with the BJP and was a part of the NDA government till recently.
But the recent rift between the TDP and the BJP over the issue of granting special status to Andhra Pradesh, has paved the way for the Congress to approach the TDP for an electoral tie-up.
This was followed by the Congress sending feelers to Professor Kodandaram for a tie-up with his new party, TJS. The TJS too seems to be in favour of joining hands with parties that oppose the TRS to prevent split in anti-TRS votes.
The Congress is now making efforts to persuade MRPS chief Manda Krishna Madiga to convince the Left parties and BLF to join hands to take-on the TRS unitedly in 2019. Out of the total 119 Assembly seats, the Congress wants to contest 70 seats and is ready to offer the remaining 39 seats to other parties, if they agree to a united fight against the TRS.
