Lessons from Rosaiah's political life

Distressed politics, dirty politics and disastrous politics are the three kinds of politics the Telugu-speaking people have witnessed in the last 65 years. The staunchest Congress man, Konijeti Rosaiah, who passed away on December 4 at the age of 88, experienced all the three phases without losing his originality, positivity and simplicity. He carved a niche for himself as a traditional politician with excellent communication skills laced with wit and sarcasm and statesmanship.

The Congress high-command's most trusted man, Rosaiah remains in the Telugu's history as a political maverick blessed with extraordinary gift of the gab and financial prudence. He represented the Telugu culture with his attire (panche and kanduva) and used the chaste language while arguing for the Congress government or making fun of the rival Telugu Desam Party. Above all, he defied a strong notion that caste plays a major role in one's political growth. Though he hailed from a numerically insignificant middle-class Vysya family, he went on to become a Minister, Chief Minister and Governor.

Being a student leader and panchayat ward member, Rosaiah learnt the basics of politics from his political mentor Acharya NG Ranga before storming into the Legislative Council in 1968. Rosaiah got benefited from his dealing with the stalwart Communist leaders while being mentored by the freedom fighters during the era of Congress dominance (1957-1982) in Andhra Pradesh. There is no turning back for him once he earned a berth in Anjaiah's cabinet in 1979. A close confidant of all Congress Chief Ministers, he was an alter-ego of former CMs Marri Chenna Reddy and YS Rajasekhara Reddy.

Rosaiah might not be as charismatic as the Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao and as dynamic as the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, but there are great takeaways from his six-decade long political career. Rosaiah might not be a crowed puller like the duo but he left some valuable lessons for the political class in the country.

Expert Political Communicator

Political communication is an art to win over the hearts of people by using the right words at right place. For instance, the rustic language of Lalu Prasad Yadav, the fiery verbose of KCR and the magical phrases of Modi are part of their planned political communication. Rosaiah belongs to this category in his own right. They weigh every word to create an impact on the rivals and people alike. They are the practitioners of the Magic Bullet Theory that we learn in communication theory which indicates that the media (magic gun) fired the message directly into audience head without their own knowledge. The message causes the instant reaction from the audience mind without any hesitation.

Rosaiah, known for his razor-sharp wit and irrefutable argument, for that matter, shouldn't be compared to our leaders in their choice of words. I have never seen Rosaiah using words like 'kukkalu, gaadidalu, sannasulu, naa kodaka, narukutaa and so on' to silence and intimidate the enemy. Unlike the present-day politicians, especially those hailing from Andhra Pradesh, Rosaiah had a clear distinction between criticism and personal attack. Rosaiah roasted the former Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on many occasions with pun and witticism but scrupulously avoided indecent or unparliamentary language against him. He never stooped down to corner the opponent for his party's political mileage. Rosaiah maintained high levels of decency and decorum while criticising the opposition. In a repartee, he told Naidu humbly that change of attitude should be shown in personality and behaviour not in the clothes we wear.

Political observers still cherish the way Rosaiah gave a befitting reply to Naidu during a discussion when the latter accused him of being over smart. In response to Naidu's sarcastic accusation, Rosaiah said: "Mr Chandrababu Naidu, I am not as smart as you are. If that is the case, I would have backstabbed Vijayabhaskar Reddy and YS Rajasekhara Reddy. I am not as smart as you are." The indirect reference to the political coup staged by Naidu to dethrone the TDP founder NT Rama Rao evoked a peel of laughter. More than YSR, it was Rosaiah who time and again took on Naidu and his colleagues and made them speechless. There is no dearth of such potshots or funniest remarks during the Assembly sessions attended by Rosaiah. He tried his best to bring life to the highly boring budget speech that he made for 15 times!

It is widely believed that the then Chief Minister NT Rama Rao obliterated the legislature council because he was not comfortable with Rosaiah's continuous onslaught on every subject that came for discussion.

A superb crisis manager

Though Rosaiah didn't study the managerial concept of SWOT (strength, weakness, opportunity and threat) analysis that is taught at B-schools, he used to apply this formula unwittingly in dealing with any issues he handled. The hallmark of his speeches was a mention about his limitations in dealing the subject. This practical and pragmatic approach earned him every position a politician aspires for.

It is said that Rosaiah never shied away from cautioning Chief Ministers when they were in a haste to announce populist measures as part of electoral politics. In the absence of such towering personalities and lack of takers of sagacious suggestions, both the Telugu States have been heading towards a big debt-trap. Rosaiah was lucky enough to have CMs with patient ears for the sake of the public exchequer. His mettle was tested to the core when his closest friend YSR's helicopter went missing in September 2009. The senior most minister in the cabinet, Rosaiah, known as 'Ajaatasatruvu' (the one without enemies), handled the situation so well that the Congress high command chose him as the successor. Amid many political twists and turns, he stepped down from the CM position as the stage was set for the formation of Telangana. While PV Narasimha Rao had donned the mantle of Prime Minister following the tragic killing of Rajiv Gandhi on May 21, 1991, Rosaiah took over as CM after the unfortunate death of Rajasekhara Reddy in the helicopter crash. Later, he successfully dealt with the Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, a hard nut to crack, as the Governor of Tamil Nadu. In all these testing and turbulent times, communication skills and his deliberate attempt to keep controversies at bay came in handy for Rosaiah to deliver the goods with perfection. When the Congress High Command scuttled Jagan Mohan Reddy's attempts to secure his father's position, Rosaiah didn't side with him but reportedly said that 'one should not find fault with the young man's political ambition.' He never encouraged his wards to make a political plunge nor nursed grudge against his colleagues and officials. A true Gandhian at heart, Rosaiah chose to lead a simple life.

Media lost a friend

Media relations indeed is a crucial and critical aspect of governance. The success of governments depends on the free speech and freedom of expression. Both the Chief Ministers of the Telugu States are keeping journalists away because of various reasons that include the highly politicised media environment. Going a step ahead, KCR shows his anger and frustration during media briefings much to the chagrin of professional journalists. Though the media scenario was equally disturbing at that point of time, Rosaiah behaved very well with media persons. Many senior editors and journalists shared heart-touching personal rapport and experiences with the departed leader on social media after his demise. He was accessible to even small-time reporters at any point of time and his doors were open for cultural organisations and artists. With the passing away of Rosaiah garu, Telugus lost a towering statesman and journalists a close friend.

It is better if our politicians take a leaf or two out of Rosaiah's long fruitful political innings for the sake of democracy.

(The author, a PhD in

Communication and Journalism, is a senior journalist, journalism educator and communication consultant)

(The opinions expressed in this column

are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of The Hans India)