Laid-back rivals keep TRS at ease

The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) is sitting pretty as the principal Opposition Congress, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which has been claiming to be the real alternative to the ruling party in 2023 Assembly elections, or whenever the next polls are held, are pursuing only part time politics.

The political activity in the state picked up earlier than usual thanks to the Huzurabad bypoll but the two Opposition parties, in particular the BJP, did not make much progress thereafter on organisational strengthening, which is vital for any political party to aim for power.

The political hibernation of the Opposition, indeed, is a music to the ears of the ruling party which otherwise is worried over the onset of anti-incumbency factor as was reflected in a recent sample survey that began in eight Assembly constituencies in four corners of the state by a reputed pollster.

The BJP seems to be keener on engineering defections at the eleventh hour and hop to the seat of power by forcing another bypoll in the meantime, rumoured to be Munugode represented by the Congress incumbent Komatireddy Raj Gopal Reddy. On the other hand, the Pradesh Congress Committee chief A. Revanth Reddy is accused by his own party men of keeping himself busy with individual shows of strength or press briefings targeting individuals or corporates.

“When the state is burning on the critical issue of paddy procurement, our leader targets Venkata Rami Reddy, former Siddipet collector who went on to become a ruling party MLC. Earlier, there was a tall talk against Kokapet land auctions but no follow up,” a senior Congress leader pointed out. Despite the high command directing him to take all the senior leaders along with him, the gap still persists, he said and cautioned against the warring seniors in the party encouraging multiple leaderships with a promise of Assembly ticket may boomerang.

The BJP state leadership too suffered a severe loss of face recently, for what the CM K. Chandrashekar Rao described as instigating farmers to grow paddy in the next rabi season. When the Chief Minister, anticipating agrarian crisis, gave the first call to farmers not to grow paddy in the 2022 rabi, the BJP or the Centre were not on his target list. But, state BJP chief Bandi Sanjay’s call to farmers to grow paddy only came in handy to the Chief Minister to turn tables on the rival.

Employees working in new districts since October 2016 have sought the state government to extend priority to them in the ongoing allotment of employees to native districts based on their nativity as per the new zonal system that was made effective in August this year.

The state government increased the number of districts from 10 to 31 in October 2016 and the employees were transferred to altogether 21 new districts as a make-shift arrangement.

The Telangana government created two more districts in 2019 (Mulugu and Narayanpet) taking the total number of districts in the state to 33. The Telangana government did not take any opinions from employees after unilaterally issuing ‘orders to serve’ and shifted them to new districts at its discretion.

When employees strongly protested the indiscriminate allotment, the government pacified them that it was only a 'temporary arrangement' and was aimed at administrative continuity.

In the five years since their creation, there has not been a single transfer despite repeated assurances to the 1.10 lakh employees posted in the new districts.

They now want to move to their native districts and are demanding preference over other employees.