With BJP in cross hairs, KCR gears up for a massive BRS rally in Khammam

With assembly polls scheduled to be held in Telangana in the later part of 2023 and the BJP aiming to pose a stiff challenge to the ruling K Chandrashekhar Rao-led Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), the political activity is heating up in the state. All eyes as of now are on the inaugural public meeting of the BRS to be held in Khammam on January 18, for which KCR is leaving no stone unturned to make it a mega show and kick-start nation-wide operations of the party.

In view of the BJP’s increasing influence in the state, KCR, as Rao is popularly known, launched a strong attack on the BJP and the central government while speaking after inaugurating the integrated district collectorate and the office of the BRS in Mahabubabad on Thursday. He warned people of forces trying to divide the country on religious and caste lines and said that the central government has been inefficient in addressing basic problems like water and electricity.

Also read: KCR warns against ‘Taliban’ like forces attempting religious divisions

“Comprehensive development is possible when there is peace and tolerance in the country and when there is a government at the Centre which works without any bias,” he said.

The Khammam rally

Rao maintained that he had launched the BRS to enter national politics in order to bring about a qualitative shift in Indian politics and administration.

Referring to the BRS’ public meeting at Khammam near Bhadradri-Kothagudem on January 18, he said the it has been planned to raise people’s awareness towards “saving the country”.

“At the moment, political parties are winning elections and people are losing. This scenario needs to change. Elections should be won by the people. People should think seriously over this issue, and change should begin in Telangana. For the same reason, I have launched BRS. I will be visiting Khammam on January 18 with CMs from several states to hold a public meeting. I request you to participate in large numbers to save this country from disruptive forces,” he said.

Along with KCR, three chief ministers – Pinarayi Vijayan, Arvind Kejriwal, and Bhagwant Singh Mann — and several other national leaders, including former Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav, are scheduled to attend the meeting.

Gamang meets KCR

In an interesting development, former Odisha chief minister and senior parliamentarian Giridhar Gamang called on KCR at Pragathi Bhavan in Hyderabad on Friday. Giridhar Gamang’s son Shishir Gamang and others were also present in the meeting.

Gamang had created history in 1999 as his vote in the no-confidence motion was responsible for the fall of the Vajpayee government. Gamang at that point in time was holding the office of chief minister of Odisha but was yet to resign from his Lok Sabha seat. When the Lok Sabha speaker GM G M C Balayogi left it to his conscience to participate in the no-confidence voting, Gamang grabbed the opportunity and voted against the Vajpayee government leading to its fall.

Gamang — who represented Odisha’s Koraput Lok Sabha constituency nine times between 1974 and 2004 and served as Union minister in the governments of Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and PV Narasimha Rao — resigned from the Congress in 2015 and joined the BJP. However, he has had a lacklustre time in the BJP.

It is, however, not yet known if KCR has invited Gamang to the BRS’s public meeting in Khammam.

BJP’s moves

Interestingly, on the same day of the BRS rally in Khammam, former parliament member of BRS from the same district, P Srinivas Reddy, is scheduled to meet BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi, according to a Hindustan Times report.

Also read: TRS is now Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) officially; KCR unfurls party flag

Reddy represented Khammam parliamentary constituency between 2014 and 2019 and has been complaining of being sidelined in the BRS for quite some time. He is also expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 19, when the latter comes to Hyderabad to inaugurate the Vande Bharat Express train. He is also planning to take out a huge rally in Khammam later, HT report quoted a BJP leader said.