KCR in NTR parallel over decision to contest two seats, anti-incumbency

HYDERABAD: Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao’s decision to contest Gajwel and Kamareddy seats drew parallels with N.T. Rama Rao, who, as a former chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh, contested Hindupur (Anantapur) and Kalwakurthy (Mahbubnagar) seats in the 1989 elections.

Then, NTR lost Kalwakurthy to Congress and subsequently, Telugu Desam conceded power to the Congress in 1989. Despite severe anti-incumbency against sitting TD MLAs then, NTR retained a majority of them and paid a heavy price.

It remains to be seen whether Chandrashekar Rao’s gamble pays off this time as BRS surveys too indicated severe anti-incumbency against over 50 sitting MLAs. Despite negative survey reports, the BRS chief retained 96 of the 103 MLAs, dropping just seven incumbents.

Although it has been a common practice for Chandrashekar Rao to shift Assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies since the formation of TRS in 2001, he has never contested two seats at a time.

After the formation of Telangana, Chandrashekar Rao contested the Lok Sabha election from Medak and Assembly elections from Gajwel, winning both, but giving up the MP post to become the first Chief Minister of Telangana state. In the 2018 Assembly polls, Chandrashekar Rao again contested the Gajwel Assembly seat and won, assuming the Chief Minister’s office for a second term, as BRS rode to power with an absolute majority.

But, this time, as Chandrashekar Rao seeks a third consecutive term in office, his decision to contest two seats has triggered a heated debate in political circles.

In undivided Andhra Pradesh, Chandrashekar Rao won the Siddipet Assembly seat four times, from 1985 to 1999, as a TD member. In 2001, Rao quit the TD, set up the TRS and contested the Siddipet seat, winning again. But in 2004, Rao shifted to the Karimnagar Lok Sabha seat and won, quitting in 2008 to demand statehood for Telangana.

In 2008, Chandrashekar Rao again contested the Karimnagar seat and won, while he shifted to Mahbubnagar in 2009, winning again.