Days after Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar rebuffed his proposal to forge a Third Front, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday declared he would soon launch a national party, delivering a blow to the ongoing attempt to bring together all Opposition parties under one umbrella.
“There has been a consensus on the alternative national agenda after prolonged discussions with intellectuals, economists, and experts from various fields like we did before the start of the Telangana movement,” an official release from Rao’s office said.
“Very soon, the formation of a national party and formulation of its policies will take place,” it said.
KCR made the announcement after his meeting with Janata Dal(S) chief HD Kumaraswamy who flew into Hyderabad on the invitation of the TRS supremo on Sunday. Kumaraswamy met Rao at Pragati Bhavan in Hyderabad on Sunday afternoon.
KCR is known to be harbouring ambition for a major role for himself in national politics for long and has been advocating the formation of a non-Congress front to take on the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. But his move has few takers in the Opposition camp and Nitish has publicly rejected this call.
In his meeting with Kumaraswamy, KCR once again talked about the “irrelevance” of the Congress, saying, “People have come to an opinion that the Congress is not a strong alternative to the BJP and they lost faith in the congress leadership,” the release said, adding, “They discussed the urgent need to the unity of regional parties so that the spirit of the democratic federation flourishes.”
Since KCR did not have any significant support base outside Telangana, the formation of his national party may not make much difference to the prospects of either the BJP or the Opposition. Still, it would be seen as a setback to the ongoing attempt to bring all anti-BJP parties under one umbrella.
The TRS won nine out of 17 Telangana seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha poll, garnering 42 per cent votes whereas the BJP won four seats with 20 per cent and Congress three with 30 per cent vote share respectively.
According to a release by the KCR office, Kumaraswamy asserted the immense experience of K Chandrashekhar Rao is required to the country in the present situation.
“KCR, who is leading the Telangana state on the path of progress by fulfilling the Telangana people’s 60-year-old aspirations, should move forward to constitute an alternative front in the national politics and play a key role, “ Kumaraswamy said, adding, that he is extending full support to KCR.
Kumaraswamy also welcomed the news that KCR will soon announce a national party and play a key role in the country’s politics.
Kumaraswamy hailed KCR’s development model and said that the entire country is discussing the progress made by Telangana in just 8 years after its birth.
The two leaders discussed the “dangerous and selfish political path adopted by the BJP Government at the Centre” and its consequences and expressed serious concerns.
“Both of them arrived at a consensus that they will protect the country from being pushed into the dangerous religious hatred in any situation. In this direction, they stressed the need for unity of all alternative political forces to safeguard the spirit of the country’s democratic federalism,” the release said.