KCR wished TRS in NDA

Hyderabad: A contentious issue, which is being hotly discussed in political circles, has become curiouser. On Sunday, none less than Lok Sabha member A P Jitender Reddy (of the TRS) spilled the beans and made a startling revelation that virtually confirmed the whispers.

Jitender Reddy said Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao wanted the TRS to be a part of the Union Cabinet in order to get more benefits. He was, however, advised against such a move by his party MPs. Jitender Reddy said KCR had expressed his desire of joining the NDA quite often.

The Lok Sabha member said he had also exhorted his party chief to abandon such an idea. It would be advantageous to remain outside the government because Telangana is a new state. It would enable the TRS to make their demands heard and secure benefits.

Jitender Reddy also contended that the voice of the party MPs could be more pronounced and effective if they were on the Opposition benches.
His argument was that the BJP on its own has 280 members and with allies the total strength of the ruling alliance was 330.

If TRS also joined the alliance, then they would become “Gharki Murgi Daal Barabar,” and as ministers they would not get opportunity to speak.
Moreover, there was a possibility of the TRS losing out on the support of the Muslims if they were seen in the company of the BJP, was the stance taken by him, Jitender Reddy claimed.

He cited the examples of Shiv Sena and the TDP, whose members never got opportunities to speak in Parliament. He said the TRS was supporting the Centre on crucial issues, but was on its own when it came to demanding their “pound of flesh” when issues pertained to the state.

This explained the reason why the TRS government had supported the demonetisation of high-value currency by the Modi government. The state unit of the BJP has been criticising the state government, alleging that it has failed to implement electoral promises and had been making adverse remarks against Mission Kakatiya and Mission Bhagiratha.

It is contrary to the stand taken by the BJP central leadership with regard to these projects. It may be mentioned that there were speculations in the past that the party’s Nizamabad MP K Kavitha would join the Union Cabinet but it did not happen. The BJP, however, does not want to lose the support of regional parties and allies, particularly in the Southern region.