Both the BJP and the MIM carry the communal tag and both of them are not main contenders for power in Telangana polls. But both the parties are hoping to take advantage if there is a hung assembly. The election trends say the Prajakutami allies have picked up strength significantly in the past few weeks and they are offering tough fight to the TRS party. This has led to a highly competitive situation where there are multi-lateral contests and any winner gets a small majority.

The BJP aims to get what best it can in this scenario and win not less than 15 seats so as to play a decisive role in the formation of a government. The party leaders believe their candidates are stronger in around 25 seats. If good efforts are made combined with workable strategies, the BJP expects to reach its target. Only with this idea in mind, the BJP national leadership has ensured that PM Modi, Amit Shah, UP CM Yogi Adityanath and scores of top leaders take part in electioneering.

Where the BJP hopes to win, there are strong rivals from the Congress, the TDP and the independents. The party is locked in triangular and quadrilateral contests. The only hope for the BJP is to look for the split of vote between the main contenders of TRS and Prajakutami.
But it remains a puzzle what direction the BJP will take in the event of its having an opportunity to play kingmaker. From the beginning, the Congress and the TDP accused the BJP of secretly supporting the KCR government. Though there is no open alliance, the BJP and the TRS are charged with having secret understanding in the present election. Regardless of these secret deals, the BJP will meet with disaster, say Prajakutami leaders, who have their own calculations.

G.Ravikiran