TRS Is Now BRS: Does CM KCR Want To Become PM KCR?

Telangana Chief Minister (CM) K Chandrasekhar Rao (popularly known as KCR) inaugurated the office of his renamed Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) party in Delhi on Wednesday (14 December).

From TRS to BRS

BRS party, earlier known as Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) was formed in 2001 with an aim to achieve a separate state of Telangana from Andhra Pradesh.

After the formation of Telangana in 2014, TRS formed the government with KCR as CM. The party was re-elected in the 2018 assembly elections.

Now CM KCR has set his eyes on a larger role in national politics and renamed TRS into BRS.

As per the party’s request, the Election Commission of India had recently approved the change of name.

Target Prime Ministership?

On Wednesday (14 December), CM KCR opened his party office in the capital in the presence of other regional party leaders like Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav and Janata Dal (S) leader H D Kumaraswamy.

CM KCR who is known to perform various Vedic rituals performed the two-day ‘Raja Shyamala Yagam’ before the inauguration of BRS office located at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Marg in New Delhi.

While CM KCR formed TRS party with ‘Jai Telangana’ as its slogan and faced the public in numerous elections, he has chosen ‘Ab ki baar, kisan sarkar’ (this time, it’s the farmers' government) as the slogan for his renamed party.

KCR, who is known as an ambitious politician, led the Telangana movement for 14 years and achieved his goal of separate state.

Though numerous factors played their role in the eventual creation of Telangana — death of the then chief minister of united Andhra Pradesh YSR Reddy, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi’s personal sympathy towards Telangana movement and BJP’s support to a separate Telangana — the role of CM KCR in it cannot be underestimated.

By forging alliances with Congress in 2004 and with TDP in 2009, and with his fast unto death in December 2009, KCR had created a political compulsion for creation of Telangana.

Political analysts believe that this political acumen and along with national ambitions can make CM KCR a heavy weight in national politics.

Though many rule out chances of a party based in a state like Telangana challenging the BJP at the Centre, prominent leaders of BRS have already claimed that their aim is to see CM KCR as the prime minister. 

Emphasis On Farm Sector

CM KCR’s political agenda could be farmer-centric. He has already toured Punjab and distributed compensation from the Telangana government to those who lost their lives during 'anti-farm laws protests'.

Even the renamed party’s slogan is ‘Ab ki baar, kisan sarkar’ showing the importance he would be providing to farmer’s agenda in the run up to 2024 elections.

BRS party leaders believe that just as PM Narendra Modi succeeded with his ‘Gujarat model’, CM KCR too would succeed with what they have described as ‘Telangana model.’

Welfare measures like 24 hours free electricity to farm sector and investment support of Rs 10,000 per acre per year under ‘Rhythu Bandhu’ scheme etc, which are under implementation in Telangana are the face of this model.

Already, the KCR-led Telangana government had given advertisements on its ‘Telangana model’ in the newspapers throughout the country.

Expanding BRS Beyond Telangana

Telangana has only 17 Lok Sabha seats. Even in these 17, the TRS (now BRS) won only nine in 2019.

Thus expanding BRS beyond Telangana is a necessity to play a prominent role in national politics.

It is likely that BRS may first focus on expanding to neighbouring states of Telangana like Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, and into Marathwada region of Maharashtra which was a part of erstwhile Hyderabad princely state.

The close involvement of Janata Dal (S) leader H D Kumaraswamy in BRS activities has given strength to speculations that the BRS could contest the upcoming Karnataka assembly elections in alliance with JD(S).

Along with the expansion of BRS beyond Telangana, uniting the chiefs of all regional parties like Nitish Kumar or Mamata Banerjee who all have their own personal ambitions is the immediate uphill task CM KCR faces.

Whether CM KCR’s BRS dream emerges as a contender to the ruling BJP or fades out as a political bubble remains to be seen.

Maybe the complacent leaders of the main opposition Congress have a lesson or two to learn from the whole episode.