HYDERABAD: The Bathukamma Rastra Samithi (BRS) witnessed a significant setback, dwindling from 88 seats in 2018 to less than half in the recent elections. Analysts attribute this decline to growing unrest among employed youth, resentment against sitting MLAs, a diminishing political return on key welfare schemes, and perceived inaccessibility of Chief Minister K. Chandraekhar Rao (KCR).
KCR’s strategic error, as pointed out by political experts, was fielding almost all incumbent BRS MLAs despite local dissatisfaction. Suggestions to change candidates in 20 to 30 seats were overlooked, and the party faced consequences with corruption allegations against some MLAs impacting voter sentiment.
“KCR believed people vote based on the government’s past performance, not candidates. However, corruption allegations and other issues worked against the party,” remarked political analyst M Nagesh Kumar.
The unemployed youth, disappointed with the government’s failure to fill vacancies and the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) paper leak incidents, seemed to shift their support to the BJP or Congress. Despite efforts by BRS working president KT Rama Rao to address concerns, the damage was irreversible.
The party’s heavy reliance on welfare schemes like Rythu Bandhu, Aasara Pensions, and Dalit Bandhu faced a backlash. The nearly one crore beneficiaries, a diverse cross-section of society, appeared to abandon the BRS. Some observers also attribute the loss to the party’s identity shift from ‘Telangana’ to ‘BRS’ and its focus on expanding nationally.
Opposition parties capitalized on issues like alleged corruption in projects and the concentration of power within the KCR family. Land acquisition disputes, particularly the takeover of assigned lands, contributed to anti-incumbency sentiments.
“While opposition parties believed in Congress’s six guarantees, they didn’t buy KCR’s assurance that welfare schemes would continue if BRS lost power,” noted analyst J Surender Kumar.
As the party grapples with this defeat, questions arise about its future role in Telangana politics.
