Hyderabad: The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), which was formed on April 27, 2001, with the sole aim to achieve statehood for Telangana in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, entered its silver jubilee year on Sunday (April 27). BRS has joined the exclusive club of parties that pioneered statehood struggles, became a ruling party and later sat in the opposition benches after losing polls – the other party being Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). The party was in the forefront of statehood agitation for 13 years after inception and led the government for two terms immediately after the formation of a separate Telangana state. It is now the principal opposition in the state.

To mark its silver jubilee, the BRS made arrangements for a massive public meeting at Elkaturthi village near Warangal, about 165 kms from here. About 1,500 volunteers were deployed to distribute water bottles and butter milk sachets to the crowd. It explains the expectations of the party on the turnout. Although the show was expected to last only a couple of hours, it was significant for the party president and former chief minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, who broke his silence vow which he had observed for nearly a year since he last made his public appearance during the campaign for Parliament elections.

In a freewheeling and exclusive interview to The Wire, Rao's son and working president K.T. Rama Rao talks about the rapid strides the BRS had taken from its nascent stage to becoming a formidable force that mounted pressure on the Union government to concede the decades-old demand for separate Telangana and steer the start-up state on its growth story. 

Excerpts from the interview:

How do you see the evolution of BRS from a fledgling outfit in 2001 to the present era?

A)  The formation of separate Telangana in 2014 was a humongous achievement of the party under the leadership of KCR (K.Chandrasekhar Rao). The capabilities of Rao were summed up by none other than the former Union finance minister of BJP, Arun Jaitley, who said, "It is very rare to see an able administrator who is also an agitator”. He succeeded tremendously during agitation and wrote the growth story of Telangana later. As a result, Telangana is number one in per capita income and leader in growth story. But, its true potential is yet to unfold for it to become the lighthouse of the country. The state is like what Istonia is for Europe; it requires tremendous commitment and resolve which only the BRS can offer. 

The party was on expansion mode across all institutions of public representatives right from day one. Did the sudden debacle of BRS in the last assembly and parliament elections not demoralise the workers?

A) Not at all. The workers are more energised now as seen from their mood at public meetings. In the assembly elections of November-December 2023, the BRS achieved respectable results with a vote share of 37%. The difference between BRS and Congress which formed the government was only 1.8%. The BRS lost polls with defeat in 14 seats by under 6,000 votes. The story would have been different if the party had won at least half of those seats. (The BRS had won 39 seats against 64 of Congress in the final analysis)

As regards parliament elections, the polls took place in an exceptionally polarised environment where people left to choose between INDIA bloc and the NDA. Any party which was not aligned to either grouping was rejected. Out of 543 Lok Sabha seats, only 18 seats were won by parties that were not aligned. Technically, both BRS and BJP lost parliament elections; the latter because its tally dropped from 303 in 2019 to 240 in 2024. But, the BJP had friends whereas we did not have. (The BRS drew a blank in all 17 parliament seats in the state)   

Has the party name change from Telangana Rashtra Samithi, when it was born, to BRS now contributed to losing base among masses? Is there any proposal to revert to the old name?

A)  No, there is no impact on the party due to the change in its name. In reality, the fact is we are identified as a party with Telangana origin. Neither its agenda, flag, symbol nor DNA changed. We are not looking in that way. In fact, people have realised that had BRS been given seats in parliament elections, it would have got its pound of flesh like the Telugu Desam Party in Andhra Pradesh and Janata Dal (U) in Bihar. The name will not be changed again.

You joined the BRS in 2006 and overtook some seniors in the party, particularly your brother-in-law T. Harish Rao who was one of the founding members. Have these leaders accepted your leadership?

A) Every party is facing this situation. For instance, Rahul Gandhi is much junior to many leaders in Congress. There are septuagenarians and octogenarians in that party. Similarly, BJP president J.P. Nadda is junior to many in that party. So, whether I got the acceptance for my position in the party is for workers to judge. Ultimately, all of us work for the same party and same leader i.e. KCR. Therefore, there is no such bitterness. 

The party has seen many ups and downs in its 25-year journey. What are the achievements that took the party to a high and low?

A) It is a unique story of the party where achieving statehood for Telangana was the most glorious achievement. It had reached the pinnacle. Then it went through a cycle of sitting in the driver's seat to steer the government for two terms and now performing the role of principal opposition. This has to be understood in the right perspective. The party has done rather well, though it has a chequered history. With a unique positioning in 20 years, the party had many things to learn from its victories and setbacks. 

Many leaders have left the party for various reasons. Have you been able to build an alternate leadership to forge ahead?

A)  Every party goes through the stage of people quitting and some more joining it. It is not limited to BRS. Yet, even though we are not in the government, we are a formidable force in Telangana politics and hope to be in the reckoning to play a decisive role in national politics in days and years to come. 

There is a popular feeling that you use social media to promote the party programmes rather than going to masses and it was this excessive dependence on social media which contributed to loss of elections. Your views?

A)  If you ask me, in fact we did not focus on social media. Our publicity was not as good as our performance. We could not take our achievements to people properly. Whether it was in the matter of creating jobs, crop loan waiver, hike in salaries of government staff, distribution of ration cards to poor or providing investment support to farmers, we were found wanting in sensitising people. In fact, the 1.8% margin of defeat could have been tackled if we had done that. 

There was a news report recently that KCR was also spending four hours on social media instead of focussing on mass contact programmes. Will this not affect the party in the long run?

A)  KCR is in touch with ground reality as a leader. He is meeting people daily and reading newspapers. It is not as if he is relying only on social media. Of course, social media is one medium of learning. He is learning, adapting to emerging situations. This is the real sign of a great leader. 

There is a case of the Anti-Corruption Bureau of police and the Enforcement Directorate against you on charges of irregularities in the conduct of Formula One car races by the BRS government. An inquiry by a judicial commission into damage to the structure of a barrage of Kaleshwaram lift-irrigation project is in advanced stage of completion. The National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) has also confirmed negligence on the part of your government in its latest findings released in a report. Will you not carry this tag of wrongdoing when you go to elections again?

A)  It is not an NDSA report but an NDA report cooked up in BJP headquarters. It is politically motivated and fabricated. Where was NDSA when the tunnel of Srisailam left bank canal collapsed, the retaining wall of Sunkesula project collapsed, the Vattem pumphouse in Palamuru-Rangareddy project submerged and the weir of Peddavagu washed away. The NDSA did not act when bridges collapsed every other day in Bihar. Whom did NDSA indict when the Morbi bridge collapsed in Gujarat and claimed 140 lives. Unfortunately, these central agencies have become tools of political abuse in the hands of Delhi to run vendetta politics. 

The BRS lacked a structured organisational setup for over a year. The party does not even have official spokespersons. Are you going to set your house in order?

A)  You will see energised and charged office bearers of the party after our organisational elections that are due in six months. We are going for a thorough revamp from grassroots level, starting from booth committees, right up to the state committee. 

Your sister Kavitha is playing a proactive role ahead of you to highlight issues plaguing the state like reservations for backward classes or lands of Hyderabad Central University. Is there any power struggle in your family?

A)  All of us and my party leaders work with common and unison of purpose to make sure KCR once again takes charge to helm Telangana. There is nobody who is more capable, committed and knowledgeable than KCR to steer the government. So, all of us have our jobs laid out to strengthen the hands of KCR. Each of us is contributing to the task in our individual capacities. 

Do you see something happening in Telangana on similar lines as Karnataka, where your friendly party Janata Dal (Secular) joined hands with the BJP? Or at least some sort of a post-poll alliance?

A) No absolutely not. The BRS has fought the last three Assembly elections alone. The trend will continue.  

There is no representation for the BRS now in Lok Sabha for the first time in two decades. Is it likely that the BJP will replace the BRS as an alternative to the Congress in Telangana, especially in the present scenario dictated by the deadly terrorist incident in Pahalgam?

A)  BJP is not a force in Telangana. None of its leaders are capable of winning their own seats in assembly elections. All the eight BJP MPs in the state have won parliament elections because of the Modi factor. It is unwise to overestimate their capabilities.

The party has not taken any of its agitational programmes as an opposition to their logical end, it has formed committees to study condition of hospitals, suicide by farmers and various other issues. But, none of them were able to mount any pressure on the government?

A) Of course we are doing our bit. We sent a committee to Chennai to study the Dravidian model of extending reservations to backward classes. The panel came back and submitted a report to the chief secretary. Another committee to study the functioning of residential schools also came up with a report which was shared with the government. In the case of suicide by distressed farmers, a complete list was forwarded to the government on the floor of the House in Assembly.

Do you expect elevation if the BRS wins the next assembly elections?

A)  I did not come into politics to make it big. I am happy with the attention and fame that I got. I am not seeking anything for myself. I just want BRS to win and KCR to become chief minister again.

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