Discussions between Prashant Kishor and KCR are expected to continue today. File
Hyderabad / New Delhi:
Poll strategist Prashant Kishor has been camping out at the official residence of Telangana Minister K Chandrashekar Rao in Hyderabad since Saturday morning, setting off a new round of speculation a day before the key National Assembly meeting. panel on whether he joins the party’s desperate attempt to make a comeback before the 2024 election.
Mr. Kishor held meetings with Mr. Rao, commonly known as KCR, at Mr. Pragati Bhavan’s official residence in central Hyderabad. The poll strategist arrived in the capital Telangana on Saturday morning and stayed overnight at the Premier’s official residence. Discussions between the two are expected to continue today.
Previous meetings between the two took place at KCR’s farm in Erravelli, about 62 kilometers away. Mr. Kishor has been spotted touring several villages and has also received feedback from people.
More recently, KCR announced in a press conference that the poll strategist will assist him in his preparations for the Telangana Council elections, which will take place next year, as well as the general election. elected in 2024.
What has made this remarkable development is that Congress continues to be the main opposition party in Telangana. As a result, Mr. Kishor’s negotiations with the former party and the TRS could simultaneously become a stumbling block in his negotiations with Congress or the KCR-led Telangana Rashtra Samithi or in political equations. new.
There is speculation about whether KCR will end its relationship with Mr Kishor or the poll strategist will say his team at IPAC is working on the TRS account while he keeps his distance.
Sources confirmed to NDTV that Mr. Kishor, in a presentation to the National Assembly leadership on April 16, proposed a coalition between Congress and the KCR party in Telangana.
Neither the TRS nor the Congress in Telangana were interested in the idea. Speaker of the State Assembly Revanth Reddy was very critical of KCR and his son KT Rama Rao.
As part of the preparations for the National Assembly elections in 2023, Mr. Reddy has organized meetings with large participation. Rahul Gandhi is also scheduled to visit Telangana on May 6, where he will address a major political meeting.
Against this backdrop, Mr. Kishor’s meeting with the KCR sparked whispers in Parliament.
The KCR, besides looking to keep its base of support at home, is also looking to play a national role ahead of the 2024 election.
Besides making strong statements such as “throwing the BJP in the Bay of Bengal”, he also met with important opposition leaders such as DMK chief and Tamil minister Nadu MK Stalin and NCP chairman Sharad Pawar, apparently. as to form a united Opposition front.
Sources said the KCR may see Congress as part of a national political front that will try to challenge and overthrow the BJP at the Center but how they deal with the problem in Telangana remains difficult.
For Mr. Kishor’s talks with Congress, a seven-member panel of top party leaders submitted a report to Congress President Sonia Gandhi on the exploratory strategist’s roadmap on party reform has suffered a series of poll failures over the years.
The committee is headed by former Union Minister P Chidambaram and includes senior leaders Mukul Wasnik, Ambika Soni, KC Venugopal, Jairam Ramesh, Digvijaya Singh and Randeep Singh Surjewala.
Tomorrow’s meeting will follow several rounds of talks between the two sides, in which Mr Kishor proposed a party reform plan and Parliamentary leaders asked him specific questions.
