KTR-Kavitha rivalry to spill onto Telangana political arena

Hyderabad: Telangana is all set for a political sibling rivalry as BRS working president K T Rama Rao, popularly known as KTR, and his younger sister, former MLC K Kavitha, prepare to launch separate statewide pada yatras to galvanise public support for their respective political endeavours.

Kavitha, who recently quit the BRS, is gearing up to formally launch her party on April 25. On the same day, she is expected to announce plans for a mass outreach programme, likely in the form of a pada yatra, across Telangana aimed at taking her nascent party to the grassroots.

Operating under the banner of Telangana Jagruthi, the social organisation she founded during the Telangana statehood movement, Kavitha has been holding programmes and protests against the ruling dispensation on a range of welfare issues.

She has made no secret of her political ambitions, explicitly stating that BRS had failed to meet the expectations of the Telangana people and that she intends to emerge as the real face of the opposition.

Meanwhile, her brother KTR indicated during an informal interaction with reporters at Kyathanpally in Mancherial district on Sunday that he planned to undertake a statewide pada yatra in 2027, focused on pressing public issues.

KTR described the initiative as part of a broader effort to bridge the gap that had developed between the party and the people during BRS’s decade in power.

Turbulent stretch

BRS has endured a turbulent stretch since losing power to A Revanth Reddy-led Congress in the 2023 Assembly elections. The party has suffered successive defeats in both rural and urban local body polls, with at least 10 MLAs crossing over to the ruling Congress. Cadre morale has taken a significant hit across several districts, making a revival initiative imperative.

On Sunday, KTR ruled out any tie-up with BJP, saying alliances did not work out well for the party and that “we will contest alone and return to power”.

With the next Telangana Assembly elections expected towards the end of 2028, 2027 will be a critical period to shape up the electoral battleground.

BRS to revert to TRS?

KTR also hinted that the party may revert to its original name, Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), though he noted that the final decision rested with party chief and his father, K Chandrasekhar Rao.

“My role as working president is only to implement his decision,” he said. His remarks come just days after Kavitha pointedly observed that the TRS name was now “free and up for grabs”.

“The TRS, by becoming the BRS in an effort to reach out to more states, distanced itself from the people of Telangana, and this proved costly,” KTR said. “The emotional connection people had with TRS and the pink flag is inseparable,” he added.

On delimitation, KTR said the proposed increase in Assembly and Parliamentary constituencies would create new political opportunities.