A political dispute has erupted between Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), with both parties making conflicting claims about a potential alliance. The controversy began when Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that he had rejected Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s (KCR) desire to join the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). In response, BRS Working President KT Rama Rao countered these claims, alleging that it was the BJP that had sought an alliance in 2018.
In a statement posted on social media, KT Rama Rao emphasized that the BRS has never formed alliances with any political party since the formation of Telangana, despite multiple requests. He further argued that it was the opposition parties who had joined forces, setting aside ideological differences, in an attempt to challenge KCR’s leadership.
Rama Rao presented old newspaper clippings as evidence to support his claim that the BJP, through its then-State President Dr. K Laxman, had sent feelers to ally with the BRS (then TRS) in 2018, especially if the BRS fell short of a majority in the assembly polls. However, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Laxman dismissed these allegations, labeling them as ill-intentioned and aimed at spreading false propaganda.
Laxman clarified that the BJP would not engage in an alliance with any dynastic or family-run political party, citing the BRS’s tie-up with AIMIM during the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) elections as an example.
In response to these accusations, Rama Rao referred to those making such claims as “political tourists” with selective amnesia. He maintained that the BRS had promptly rejected the alliance offer when it was presented.
This political feud escalated after Prime Minister Modi’s recent statement, where he disclosed that he had turned down KCR’s request to join the NDA following the 2020 Hyderabad Municipal Corporation elections. The BRS vehemently denied the Prime Minister’s remarks, while Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reiterated his belief that the BRS and BJP had an understanding. Rahul Gandhi humorously referred to BRS as “BJP Rishtedaar Samiti” (BJP Relatives Committee).
In his social media post, Rama Rao questioned why the BRS would consider an alliance with a party like the BJP, which failed to secure deposits in 105 assembly segments. He also asserted that the BRS had the strength to independently form the government in GHMC elections, rendering any alliance unnecessary.
This ongoing dispute highlights the complex and ever-evolving nature of political alliances and rivalries in India’s dynamic political landscape.