Common sense politics key for long-term power

Telangana Chief Minister Anumula Revanth Reddy on Sunday said that the Congress would remain in power in Telangana till 2034. He made this grand statement during an interaction with the media ahead of the much-awaited Tuesday’s by-poll to the Jubilee Hills Assembly seat. This is not the first time that he has made such a comment. He said so several times earlier too. His confidence might have stemmed from the fact that political parties retained power for a second term in the last three decades in this region.

While Telugu Desam Party was in power from 1994-2004, Congress ruled from 2004 to 2014 in the undivided Andhra Pradesh. Post bifurcation that saw the emergence of Telangana as a separate state, Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), later rechristened as Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), was in power for two terms from 2014 to 2023. That way, TDP’s Nara Chandrababu Naidu was in power for two consecutive terms, Dr YS Rajashekara Reddy of Congress retained power in 2009 in the undivided AP, while BRS founder Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao retained power in 2018 in Telangana.

But this doesn’t mean that people will simply give a second consecutive term to the Revanth-led Congress. In 1994, Congress faced ignominious defeat after a single term while TDP under its mercurial founder NT Rama Rao also lost elections miserably in 1989. However, it is not to say that it’s an impossible task to remain in power for a longer period. This is best illustrated by Narendra Damodardas Modi. He was continuously in power in his home state, Gujarat, since 2001 before his elevation as the Prime Minister in 2014, in which position he is already into his third successive term. As the head of an elected government, he completed 24 years recently. Naveen Patnaik in Odisha, Nitish Kumar in Bihar and Jyoti Basu in West Bengal ruled their respective states uninterruptedly for over two decades.

There are some other examples as well. But long-term power doesn’t come easily. After winning the first term, parties and leaders need to handle power with care, take steps that benefit a large chunk of the electorate in both short term and long term, and initiate measures to consolidate their position. Further, the promises they make should be implementable. This is where most parties and leaders falter. In their eagerness to come to power, they make promises left, right and centre. And then they struggle to implement them. The Congress government in Telangana is in a similar situation now. KCR lost power in 2023 despite implementing several high-value welfare schemes due to the severe anti-incumbency factor against MLAs.

On its part, Congress promised extended versions of KCR’s welfare schemes. In addition, it also promised welfare schemes that were promised in Karnataka. Now it’s struggling to implement all those promises due to financial constraints. Debt burden left behind by the KCR government is also a hindrance. But it can still implement the promises if it plugs leakages in the freebies. For instance, it can restrict financial assistance under Rythu Bharosa up to three acres to all farmers. Implementing its promise to increase old-age pensions should be the priority.

Further, it should build a positive narrative about the state’s economy, attract more investments and make concerted efforts to fuel economic growth. Higher economic growth will be useful in raising additional debt. More important is common sense politics with people’s interest on top. Reining in corruption must be prioritised. Devoid of these, Revanth Reddy’s wish to get a second consecutive term will remain a pipedream. So, irrespective of whether Congress wins the Jubilee Hills by-election or not, the Grand Old Party needs to pull up its socks if it wants to retain power in Telangana in the next Assembly polls. It is more so for Revanth Reddy, who was the X factor in the party’s 2023 triumph. That’s beyond doubt, as of now.