Hyderabad, Nov 4: “Give a politician enough rope, and he may hang his whole party by disclosing its innate contradictions and opportunism”.
By now, the screaming and shouting is over and the dust seems to have settled over the Sagara Haram (Telangana March) and so called signals said to have been received by KCR on Telangana from Congress high-command, thanks to the latest statement of Shinde, Union Home Minster that decision on Telangana has national repercussions indicating that the Congress is not in a hurry to settle the issue.
The Telangana campaign after the momentum generated by Telangana March and ongoing Padayatras by CBN and Sharmila somehow haven’t reached fever pitch to generate delirious abuse and one can, for the moment, reflect on the sad state of “Andhra Pradesh”.
The saddest part is that Andhra Pradesh on the boil not so long ago has returned to simmer. There is no danger—at least in the government’s eyes—of the wrath of the people spilling over and sweltering all in its way. Appearances can be deceptive, and to our mind this is the case at the moment.
“CBN and YS Jagan, KCR and Kodandaram, Raghavulu and Narayana, Vimalakka and Gaddar, coastal Andhra MPs and Telangana MPs” all are busy playing their own game. Not one of them seems to have a people’s perspective.
The Congress leadership has convinced itself that the CBN is in such a sorry mess that he can only shoot himself in the foot if he tries to aim the gun at the ruling party. With one squinted eye turned towards enigmatic YSRCP leadership and unpredictable TRS supremo, CBN in fact does appear more than confused.
In politics of Andhra Pradesh, there are no areas of convergence among TDP and YSRCP and TRS and neither miss an opportunity to lash out at the other on the slightest pretext. Yet, surprisingly, there are stark similarities in their approach towards state politics.
While YSRCP and TRS are providing outside support to the Congress-led state government “to check the growth of CBN as an alternative”, TDP on its part facing charges of colluding with the Congress to halt the emergence of YSRCP and consolidation of TRS. Every one of them is critical of the Congress’ vendetta politics and policy inertia on various issues and is ready to rally the public against it, but none is eager and in an hurry to target the Congress.
And, while all actors on the political stage have called for the ouster of the Congress government to have an early election for the Assembly, none is keen to oust the government just now.
It came as no surprise; therefore, that KCR has been on a “switch on- switch off” mode on a decision to relaunch the movement. True to the form of personality-oriented political outfits that his TRS has been reduced to, his party leaders authorized him to take a decision at “appropriate time” and KCR has been allowed to plan his next moves in a leisurely way in the confines of his farm house.
A similar chore is being repeated in the TDP and YSRCP where the final call will have to be made by CBN and YS Jagan respectively depending on their convenience.
Their politics may be in jarring contrast. Yet, their motivations are not much different. YS Jagan has already spoken publicly about his Chief Ministerial ambitions.
In case of KCR, it is the political grapevine’s worst kept secret. Each of them is involved in back-channel communications with the political establishment ruling in the Raisina Hills.
The allegation leveled by the TDP that the Congress high-command is dangling the sword of CBI over YS Jagan and keeping KCR under reins by reaching tacit understanding with him on the strategy to be followed pending final decision on Telangana, may be a cry of desperation. But it is not without an element of truth.
There are other similarities in the style of politics these traditional rivals in Andhra Pradesh. While CBN has forged an OBC-led combination of minorities and a sprinkling of other castes, in the case of Jagan the pyramid has Reddys at the top and the rest downward.
On the other hand, KCR, a shrewd politician endowed with an uncanny sense of timing, is mired in arrogance that he is capable of reigniting the passions of Telangana people whenever he wants. He is least cared of the average Telangana protagonist who felt let down with his theory of signals, and continues to enact his gimmicks with his narrative on his prolonged stay in Delhi and his supposed fruitful discussions with the Congress high-command.
On sidelines of above, there are many a maverick leaders and virtuoso individuals who have began to shift their loyalties particularly from the Congress and the TDP and are jumping either into YSRCP or into TRS in search of their political future.
Matters are further compounded when ‘all these so called "Aya Rams and Gaya Rams" are advised by the respective party Presidents no less, to remain within the strict confinement of Laxman Rekha. The trouble is that mythological precepts from the Ramayana can’t be blindly prescribed for the much darker times of the Mahabharata. Men of straw either in the government or in the Opposition can’t lead their compatriots away from the precipice in these dark times.
So much for politics of principles! Three Cheers for politics of opportunism!
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