Telangana: There was little reason to believe that TRS will be shown doors after 1 term

Hyderabad, Dec 11: The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) was rushing fast towards forming its second successive government in the state which was formed nearly five years ago. Led by K Chandrasekhar Rao who called elections months earlier to renew his mandate, the ruling party was set for a decisive victory in the 119-member Assembly.

Kutami perhaps did not do much to help its cause

The Opposition or Praja Kutami comprising the Congress, Telugu Desam Party and a few others, proved to be a complete failure while the BJP ended up even worse. As per the reports, the Opposition parties cobbled up a tie-up just ahead of the polls without having a strong grip on the ground and it didn't pay off. There was no big face either to take on Rao. The 'friendly fight' that the Congress had with the Telangana Jana Samithi, one of the allies of the Kutami, was also seen as a blow for the alliance.

Naidu's presence triggered clash of Telangana and Andhra sub-nationalisms

One aspect of the result in Telangana is the role of Chandrababu Naidu, the chief minister of the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh whose TDP contested the election as part of the Kutami. The presence of Naidu could have made the clash between Telangana and Andhra sub-nationalisms relevant in this election and the fear of an Andhra-Delhi takeover of the state which came into being after a long struggle could have alerted the voters to give the TRS another term. The Kutami was perhaps over ambitious to expect Rao's fall inside five years for he is the first chief minister of a new state and deserved to get more than a term to show how much he has really done for the state.

Rao could now go for national ambition

This result could also see Rao emerging as a leader with a bigger attractive power nationwide than Naidu who of late has donned the mantle of the unifier of various anti-Narendra Modi leaders. The Telangana Assembly election results might have just laid the path for a bigger personality clash between the two southern leaders.