BJP makes inroads into Telangana: Did overconfident TRS drop the ball?

One of the biggest upsets for the TRS includes the seat of Nizamabad that was held by Kavitha Kalvakuntla, sitting MP and daughter of Telangana CM.

news Lok Sabha 2019

In what was one of the biggest surprises this Lok Sabha Election and a sign that the TRS may be losing its iron grip over Telangana, the BJP made inroads into Telangana, taking their tally of MPs from just one to four — in Adilabad, Karimnagar, Nizamabad and Secunderabad constituencies.

Soyam Bapu Rao from Adilabad, D Arvind from Nizamabad, G Kishan Reddy from Secunderabad and Bandi Sanjay Kumar from Karimnagar all won margins of over 50,000 votes.

Nizamabad is one of the TRS’ biggest upsets, as the seat was held by Chief Minister and TRS leader K Chandrasekhar Rao’s daughter Kavitha Kalvakuntla. It was also a location the BJP had focussed on, as BJP president Amit Shah had held a public meeting in the constituency, and was scheduled to hold one in Karimnagar, which he then dropped out of. Secunderabad was the only constituency held by the BJP in 2014, and the party will retain it.

Who are BJP MPs from Telangana?

Soyam Bapu Rao, Adilabad: A former MLA from Boath, Bapu Rao had been elected in 2004 on a TDP ticket. The president of Thudum Debba, an organization working for Adivasi rights, he won by 58,650 votes in Adilabad constituency. He had unsuccessfully contested as the Congress candidate in the Telangana Assembly polls in 2018. After the Congress refused him the MP ticket, Bapu Rao joined the BJP in March and was offered the MP ticket to contest from Adilabad.

Bapu Rao led the Adivasi agitation in 2018, demanding the government to decategorize the Lambadas from Scheduled Tribes list. Being at the forefront of the agitation helped him cultivate an image as a mass leader, and Adivasis have also led various struggles under his guidance.

D Arvind, Nizamabad: Entrepreneur and son of TRS Rajya Sabha MP D Srinivas, D Arvind joined the BJP in 2017, but his father continues to be with the TRS. In a surprise upset, Arvind won by 70,857 votes over incumbent Kavitha Kalvakuntla.

D Arvind joining the BJP had caused a flutter, and TRS MPs and MLAs led by Nizamabad MP K Kavitha even wrote a letter to TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao to take disciplinary action against Srinivas. TRS MLAs and MPs have in the past accused Srinivas, a former Congress leader, of creating several factions in Nizamabad and sabotaging the party from within. Calling him an ‘opportunist’ for inducting Arvind into the BJP, they accused him of sabotaging the party to ensure his son’s elevation.

Another point of contention is the Nizam Sugar Factory, which is shut. Demanding that the factory be reopened, Arvind also took out a 120-km padayatra in 2018 from Jagtial to Bodhan.

G Kishan Reddy, Secunderabad: Former BJP state President G Kishan Reddy contested in the only seat the party held in the state, held formerly by former Union Minister of State Bandaru Dattatreya. Secunderabad, a seat which the TRS has never won, saw Kishan Reddy, a long-time party worker of the BJP, secured 62,114 votes over TRS candidate Talasani Srinivas Yadav, the son of a minister.

Bandi Sanjay Kumar, Karimnagar: A member of the RSS, Sanjay was a president of the ABVP and an executive member. He further rose to the ranks of the BJP, and worked as Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha town secretary. Later, he went on to become a state spokesperson of the BJP. He even contested in the recently-held Assembly elections from Karimnagar, and lost. Sanjay won from leading in Karimnagar by a margin of 89,508 votes defeating Vinod Kumar, who is a close aide of KCR.

How did the BJP up its tally?

Political analyst Palwai Raghavendra Reddy said that one shouldn’t compare results of the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls. “When it comes to national politics, people choose parties that have more chances of a forming a stable government. The ‘There Is No Alternative’ (TINA) factor has surely helped BJP in winning seats this time,” he said.

“BJP’s win comes as a wake-up call for TRS, especially at a time when the party is trying to cobble a Federal Front at the Centre without the support of BJP. KCR needs to have a re-look not only at his national ambitions, but only at his assessments within the state. Now that BJP doesn’t need an alliance partner. Wait for a couple of months, and things can get difficult for KCR and his party,” he added.

Subhash, a spokesperson of the BJP’s Telangana unit, said that campaign strategy had been changed for the Lok Sabha Elections.

“After Odisha and Karnataka, party president Amit Shah has been focussing entirely on Telangana. We couldn’t, unfortunately, make it for the Assembly Elections but the present mandate shows that in the future we would be the alternative for TRS in Telangana,” he said.

The Anti-Razakar movement is also something that the BJP has stressed on. Each year, the BJP celebrates September 17, the day that Hyderabad became a part of the Indian Union.

After Independence, the Nizam had decided not to immediately join the Indian Union. The Centre hit back with military force. The Nizam’s Army, along with his private militia known as the 'Razakars', had borne the brunt of five days of military conflict.

While it was this very battle that led to Hyderabad being integrated, successive governments in undivided Andhra Pradesh avoided official celebrations to mark the day for fear that it might trigger communal violence. However, the BJP has been insistent on doing so.

Nizamabad

However, the TRS’s biggest upset is most certainly the Nizamabad constituency, whose incumbent MP is a part of the TRS first family. D Arvind, who took on Kavitha in his maiden election, has gained a lead of over 50,000 votes.

According to Subhash, the lead was expected.

“Aravind’s lead against Kavitha is on expected lines. Kavitha, being an MP, always had national ambitions and couldn’t realise the pulse of the farmers in the state. More than the candidates themselves, it’s the Modi factor that has helped BJP this time in Telangana.”

Since February, farmers in Nizamabad district have been fighting against the state government to classify turmeric as a food crop, and have demanded Minimum Support Price for turmeric and red jowar. They’ve also held protests for the implementation of a National Turmeric Board, which Kavitha had promised when she came to power, and had told TNM that she had made efforts to institute a board. Scores of farmers also filed their nomination for their election to show their disappointment, and a record 185 candidates contested from the constituency.

Analyst Raghavendra Reddy said that Kavitha’s failure to address issues is what cost them. “Banking on this incompetency, BJP’s Ram Madhav was quick to announce that a turmeric board will be set up within 15 days if the party comes to power at the Centre.”

Telangana Kisan Congress chief Anvesh Reddy, who led farmer agitations, said that the question was simply between the Congress and the BJP because the TRS failed to address their grievances.

“When people decided to vote for another party, they’ll see whether to vote for the Congress or the BJP. They would have believed that BJP will give them the turmeric board,” he said.

“Kavitha is only the CM’s daughter, but what has she done in the last five years? She didn’t institute the board, talk to the people. People asked for a bonus for red jowar, but even that wasn’t given. So, the people have given their verdict,” Anvesh added.

(With inputs from Priyanka Richi)