KCR is known for gaining an early upper hand by surprising his rivals with his unconventional ideas, unpredictable gameplans and controversial campaign styles.
While kickstarting his election meetings recently, KCR made an unsparing attack on TDP and allotted far more time to criticise AP’s Chandrababu Naidu than his immediate main opponent Congress party in his state.
As expected, KCR’s increased dose of anti-Babu and anti-Andhra language triggered widespread condemnation with TV media running special debates with experts on this aspect for days together.
But the logic behind TRS strategy with regard to TDP has not been known in detail till now. To change tone, Congress Telangana leaders have been making provocative statements like ‘KCR’s family is enjoying the fruits of sacrifices made by Telangana people in statehood agitation’. ‘That KCR tells only lies like the instance of his famous vow to make a dalit CM but instead he himself took up the post in the name of reconstruction’. Still TRS is seeing Congress as a lesser threat than TDP.
As campaign picks up momentum, TRS goes on stepping up its attack on Chandrababu rather than Congress. KTR has come up with an answer to why they have adopted this strategy. He says that there is a greater need to eliminate the threat from Chandrababu who, KTR says, is trying to continue his interference in Telangana state through his party’s alliance with Congress.
KTR even argues that Congress Telangana President Uthamkumar Reddy is just a ‘puppet in the hands of Chandrababu’ and TDP leaders. It is AP CM’s plans and strategies that Uthamkumar is following and executing in Telangana, says KTR.
KTR has also asked his party leaders to expose Chandrababu more as a threat to TRS rather than Congress.
Whatever said and done, KCR has already set the tone for December election campaign. By selecting Chandrababu for his main attack, KCR has apparently indicated that there is no leader in rival parties in Telangana who is equal in stature and experience to him.
A clever strategist, KCR has prevented Congress from getting full public focus as the immediate alternative to TRS. In doing so, he tried to remove only major threat to his party in Dec poll.
For all practical purposes, it seems TRS will stick to its strategy of mainly attacking Chandrababu till campaign ends. High-voltage dramas and heated exchanges will continue between TDP and TRS leaders from both Telugu States.
This is certainly a testing time for Congress Telangana leaders. If they do not counter KCR strategy successfully, they may lose the election battle before it begins. Their immediate need is to present Congress before voters as an immediate alternative to TRS. Only this way, voters will give a serious thought about it.
As someone said, there are too many stalwart campaigners for Congress and they are not working in sync to expose KCR effectively. It is going to be Congress’s bigger challenge in next few weeks.
