Supercilious nature of KTR, KCR will bring TRS down

​Sircilla: Though Sircilla is predominantly a Backward Classes constituency, it is only Velamas’ who win from here. Till now, Velama candidates won 11 times, while Reddys won only once in 1983 when Telugu Desam Party’s V Mohan Reddy defeated his nearest Congress rival Regulapati Papa Rao. Now, the Grand Alliance candidate KK Mahender Reddy is pitted against KCR’s son and IT Minister K T Rama Rao.

The first time Mahender Reddy took on KTR was in 2009. It was when the latter could scrape through the election with just 171 votes. At that time, Mahender Reddy was a TRS rebel. But in 2010 by-election, KTR had covered vast ground and won the election with 68,220 votes margin over Mahender Reddy. Mahender Reddy was once very close to KCR. But after the latter preferred his son for Sircilla in 2009, Mahender Reddy broke away from him. 

In an in formal interview with The Hans India correspondent, Mahender Reddy  appeared very confident of his victory this time. A soft-spoken and unassuming leader, Mahender Reddy scores over KT Rama Rao in being accessible to people in the constituency. Having a frugal meal at Padmashali Kalyanamantapam in Sircilla along with his workers, Mahender Reddy points out that the talk that Bathukamma sarees had brought about a dramatic change in the living standards of weavers was all hogwash and that he would bust the myth soon.

“Bathukamma sarees did not bring any qualitative change in the lives of weavers who happen to be about 60,000 in this constituency. The worker and also the employer have not been benefited from it. It is only the Setu (the one who invests money) benefited from the Bathukamma sarees. “The Setu earned crores of rupees, while the weavers continue to lead a miserable life,” he said.

Mahender Reddy said the other issue that rankles the minds of the people is the sand scam which had benefited the TRS most. KTR, who is also minister for Mines, had ensured that TRS leaders benefit from illegal sand mining. “The State may have earned Rs 2,000 crore as cess from mining, but how about those who had earned thousands of crores of rupees with government looking the other way when illegal sand mining was taking place?” he asked.

He believes that KCR will not be able to weave a web of magic as he did in 2014 and help his son win the election. Forget about KTR, KCR himself is going to lose the election from neighbouring Gajwel as the Congress is poised to corner the seat with T Narasa Reddy from TRS joining forces with the Congress and extending full support to the official candidate V Pratap Reddy. “Added to this, we have bonus TDP votes,” he said, adding “KCR sought votes in 2014 and people took pity on him and elected the TRS. Why should they take pity on him every time he approaches them?” he asked.

Mahender’s forte is his availability in Sircilla and easy access to people. “I am always in the midst of people. I live here unlike KTR. He is not accessible. He has appointed four representatives here who call the shots. That is why people have stopped going to his representatives,” Mahender Reddy stated, adding that KTR is very arrogant, a trait which no one in Telangana likes. “The supercilious nature of not only KTR, but also KCR will bring the TRS down this time,” he said, adding another trait which he said Telangana people loathe is lying. “KTR now says that it was at his instance that Sircilla district has been formed. But on contrary, it was KTR who opposed it. It was the people of this land, who were known for their fire in their belly, got the district of their own. Now KTR wants to own it,” he said.

Mahender Reddy added that KTR was a leader without followers and each time he contested he lived in the dread of losing his seat. He always uses politics of lowest order to secure his win. “In 2014, he sent a TRS leader into the Congress, ensured that he got the party ticket and then defeated him as part of a plan. Even now, KTR tried to use the same trick. He sent one Velama leader into the Congress and tried to get Congress ticket for him. But since I know how KTR operates, we foiled his game plan,” he added.