Is BRS extending an olive branch to BJP? KTR’s Delhi visit sparks rumours

Hyderabad: Are the meetings of working president of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) KT Rama Rao with the senior leaders of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in New Delhi intended to bridge the gap between the two parties?, ask Opposition leaders.

Political speculations are rife in Hyderabad as the meetings are being closely watched by the local Congress and BJP leaders. Political analysts are also watching these developments as political equations tend to change, especially due to the upcoming Telangana Assembly elections.

Meeting senior BJP leaders

KT Rama Rao, in his New Delhi visit, met with union defence minister Rajnath Singh, union minister for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri and union minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Piyush Goyal.

The pending works for Telangana were highlighted along with the new works of metro rail and expressway which were discussed in detail via the letters submitted to the Central Government. A press conference in Delhi also highlighted the development works that Telangana wants to take up. There was criticism of the Centre for its lack of support to the state which was the highest contributor to the development of the nation.

Telangana Congress calls it a pact

Congress senior leader and Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee senior member Mohammed Ali Shabbir alleged that the BJP and BRS parties have made a secret pact and that the visit of IT minister K Taraka Rama Rao to Delhi was proof of the same. Ali Shabbir said, “Why did chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao not meet or greet the ministers when they came to the state? Why are these special meetings being held now? They are claiming to meet the ministers for development funds but the real intention is to seal the pact.”

“Why is the state BJP leadership talking about KTR’s Delhi visit? Isn’t this ridiculous?” he said.

Congress refuses to extend support

Political analysts state that BRS is trying to bridge the gap with BJP as Indian National Congress refused to extend support. A senior political analyst on condition of anonymity explained, “It may be noted that MLC K Kavitha praised senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi for the Women’s Reservation Bill. The BRS did try to reach out to the INC but there was no response from them. Due to this reason, they are now building bridges with BJP.”

Limited impact by state BJP leaders

After all the excitement BJP tried building in the state, the party has suddenly got pushed onto a backfoot as the local leaders failed to attract big names from the state, explained political analyst P Raghavendra Reddy.

“Congress is seeing a lot of momentum in the state but the BJP is not. This is making the central BJP take a soft approach to the BRS,” he said.

“It is not just the KTR meeting but also CM KCR who is talking about the BJP differently in Maharashtra. KCR’s recent speeches calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi his 'close friend' give a different perspective of how the BRS views the BJP now. But it is too early to make conclusions as equations change with time,” explained Reddy.