Speculations rife over outcome of MLC election

Hyderabad: The three main political parties in Telangana— the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), the Congress and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) were busy with working out strategies to win the MLA quota MLC elections to be held on June 1. Though there were six vacant posts, seven candidates are in the fray.

Ruling TRS party fielded five candidates in the contest. The main Opposition Congress and the TDP fielded one each. The Opposition parties’ contention was that the ruling party had no strength to win four seats but it fielded five candidates. The Opposition parties were more concerned about the MLAs shifting loyalties in the last minute. Due to TRS effect, the TDP has kept its MLAs in a secret place. The Congress too kept its MLAs in a Golconda resort to see that their MLAs will not be lured by the TRS.

There is one version doing rounds that the Congress will be in safe zone as its existing MLAs are firm in making their candidate Akula Lalitha win the election. Political analysts predicted that the TDP candidate or TRS’s fifth candidate would taste defeat in this election. There is another version that the TRS already succeeded in attracting TDP MLAs, but TDP leaders were stating that some TRS MLAs would cast their vote to TDP MLC candidate Vem Narender Reddy.

TRS has won 63 MLAs in the general elections. Two each from the BSP and the YSRCP and five members from the TDP and four members from the Congress joined the TRS making their number 76. The MIM has already declared that it will extend its support to the TRS. Including nominated MLA, TRS’s strength reached to 85.

In the last elections, the Congress won 21 MLA seats. Independent candidate from Narsampet constituency Donthi Madhava Reddy joined the Congress, but the Congress lost four MLAs as they joined the ruling party. Due to this, the Congress’ strength was reduced to 17. Even now, the Congress party has the strength to make their candidate win the election comfortably. The Congress would face problem only if the ruling party attracts the Congress MLAs with some secret sops.

All the way, the TDP is in a troublesome situation. The TDP has won 15 MLA seats in general elections. With the BJP five members’ support, its strength reached to 20, but five MLAs shifted their loyalties towards the ruling party. Kukatpally MLA Madhavaram Krishna Rao joined TRS on the very next day of Mahanadu, giving a shock to TDP.

Following this unexpected shock, the TDP kept its MLAs in a hotel located in Ranga Reddy district. It is learnt that the BJP MLAs too were lodged in that hotel. The present strength of the TDP is just 15 MLAs and it needs two more candidates to win the election. But TDP was confident on making their candidate Vem Narender Reddy win the election.

The TDP leaders were stating that the TRS chief and Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao was giving top priority to the MLAs who had joined from other political parties and it is making the original TRS MLAs unhappy. TDP senior leaders Errabelli Dayakar Rao and Revanth Reddy already chalked out an action plan to make the TRS MLAs to cast their vote to TDP candidate.

Who wins the election will be known on June 1 evening only, but all political parties were conducting secret camps in hotels and were saying that their MLAs would come directly to the Assembly on Monday to cast their vote. There is speculation on Sunday that two more TDP MLAs would shift their loyalties to TRS. TRS would easily grab five MLC seats if two more TDP candidates shifted their loyalties to TRS party at the cost of TDP MLC candidate.