leave alone the merger, an electoral alliance between the Congress and the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) is looking bleak with the two parties toughening their positions.
If the Congress leadership was unhappy with the tantrums of the TRS leaders on the issue of merger, the TRS was stung by the Congress move of admitting rebel TRS MP Vijayashanti and an MlA from Adilabad district Aravinda Reddy. Not leaving the matters there, the Congress was also trying to building the bridges with the leaders of Telangana Joint Action Committee (TJAC) headed by Kodanda Ram.
The TJAC, which played an active role in mass mobilisation for the cause of Telangana, was often criticised by other political parties for becoming an acolyte of the TRS. The Congress has now offered its election tickets to many leaders of the TJAC. The issue figured in the meeting Union Minister Jairam Ramesh had with TJAC leaders. Ramesh was accompanied by former IAS officer of Andhra Pradesh cadre and AICC Scheduled caste cell K Raju. They urged the TJAC leaders to support the Congress which kept its word and delivered Telangana at a great risk to its own interest.
The TRS has reacted strongly to the “poaching” of its leaders by the Congress party. “How they can do it while talking of working together,” asked senior TRS leader T Harish Rao. Son and daughter of K Chandrashekar Rao have also come out against the merger of the party with the Congress. “People want us to retain our identity as a separate party,” said K Taraka Rama Rao, son of KCR.
Vijayshanti, film actress-turned-politician was suspended from the TRS in view of her public criticism of the KCR. She represents Medak lok Sabha constituency, once represented by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. She was likely to be nominated by the Congress from the same constituency.