Hyderabad: Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao did not invite politicians from parties other than the TRS for his Sahasra Chandiyagam this time.
The last time he conducted a similar event, the Ayutha Chandiyagam in December 2015, Mr Rao had made it a big event, inviting then President of India Pranab Mukherjee; Prime Minister Narendra Modi; then Tamil Nadu Governor K. Rosaiah; Maharashtra Governor C.H. Vidyasagar Rao; Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and judges from the Supreme Court and the High Court.
Mr Rao had personally met all these personalities, even going to Vijayawada to meet his Andhra counterpart, to invite them to the Ayutha Chandiyagam.
Around 40,000 people, including several Hindu religious and spiritual figures, were also invited. Several facilities were created for the VIP guests, like a helipad for five choppers, cottages for stay and a dining hall for 10,000 people. Arrangements were also made for 10,000 people to witness the yagam from behind barricades and for another 10,000 people to watch the proceedings from another hall.
But this time, people are not even allowed to witness the Yagam, confined strictly to invitees. Several TRS MPs, MLAs, MLCs and party leaders attended the Yagam with their family members on Day One.
Some MLAs and party leaders were able to attend the first day of the Yagam because of the panchayat elections. With the Cabinet expansion still pending, most MLAs are not leaving anything to chance, and are trying every opportunity to meet the Chief Minister and his son and TRS working president K.T. Rama Rao. Not surprisingly they are followed by TRS MLAs wherever they go.
