KCR RE-NOMINATES KESHAV RAO TO RS FOR FEDERAL FRONT
Keshav Rao originally began his political career in the Congress.
Contrary to speculation in Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), its chief and Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) re-nominated K. Keshav Rao for a second term to Rajya Sabha, along with another candidate, K.R. Suresh Reddy, former Speaker of combined Andhra Pradesh. Both will be declared elected unopposed for the two seats from Telangana on 18 March, the last date for withdrawals.
There was a demand from within the ruling party for sending KCR’S daughter and former Nizamabad MP K. Kavitha to the Rajya Sabha along with person from the dominant Reddy community this time.
There was also widespread opinion among the party seniors that Keshav Rao, popularly known as KK, wouldn’t get another term as he years old.
Telangana now has to fill two vacancies to the Legislative Council—one from the local body’s seat from Nizamabad constituency and another from the Governor’s nomination quota. Chief Minister KCR has taken a comprehensive view of all the four seats—two MPS and two Mlcs—and came to a view to resend KK to Rajya Sabha for one more term, till 2026.
KK, a former journalist and PHD scholar from Osmania University, originally began his political career in Congress and became a minister in the T. Anjaiah Cabinet in 1981. Known for his aggressive talk, KK, who belonged to the OBC community, always regarded himself a socialist. After a lull of two decades, he returned to active politics in the 2000s, demanding a separate Telangana state.
He was first sent to Rajya is already 81
Sabha from 2006 to 2012 and became a Congress Working Committee member too. Then, he was given charge of West Bengal among other states when he developed a rapport with Mamata Banerjee. KK quit Congress in early 2013 and joined TRS for the cause of Telangana’s statehood. He was sent to Rajya Sabha from TRS in 2014. This will be his third term in Rajya Sabha with a gap of two years from 2012 to 2014.
TRS circles were puzzled over KCR’S choice of KK at the cost of Kavitha, whose birthday is celebrated in a big way on 13 March by the party cadre. Apart from being a key leader of TRS, Kavitha also heads her own Telangana Jagrithi, a cultural wing that promotes KCR’S leadership. The Chief Minister received some requests from TRS MLAS that Kavitha be given a chance to go to Rajya Sabha this time.
Roads and Buildings Minister Vemula Prashant Reddy who hails from Nizamabad had urged the Chief Minister that Kavitha can serve in the Rajya Sabha till the next Lok Sabha elections when she can again contest and win her seat. The TRS leadership is of the view that BJP candidate Aravind Dharmapuri’s victory over Kavitha in Nizamabad was a random win and that the seat would be theirs again in next election.
However, KCR’S plans of playing an active role in national politics, through his pet idea of federal front, have helped KK get another term in RS. KK’S familiarity with Mamata Banerjee and other national leaders has definitely contributed to his continuation in the Upper House. Moreover, KCR wants Kavitha to wait until the next Lok Sabha elections and win from Nizamabad. As Kavitha was eliminated from the Rajya Sabha fray, the chances of Suresh Reddy had brightened as he too belongs to old Nizamabad district. Suresh Reddy, 61, is known for his oratorical skills in English and Hindi and was keen on a Rajya Sabha ticket, though he was offered an MLC. Now there are no Reddys in TRS’ four MPS in Rajya Sabha. While KK is from Hyderabad, south Telangana, Suresh Reddy is from the north.
Presently, there are four TRS MPS in Rajya Sabha—j.
Santhosh Kumar, D. Srinivas, Banda Prakash Mudiraj and Badugu Lingaiah Yadav. However, Srinivas, father of Nizamabad BJP MP Aravind, has been kept away from TRS for the last two years. From 9 April on, TRS strength will go to six in the Upper House and mostly they will be sailing with the ruling BJP.
By allotting Rajya Sabha tickets to KK and Suresh Reddy, KCR conveyed a message that he wanted to reward loyalists and keep his promises to those who joined the party at his request. Suresh Reddy hails from the Armoor of Nizamabad where BJP got considerable votes of turmeric farmers in 2019. Suresh Reddy is expected to wean them away to TRS which would help Kavitha in the next LS elections. For the two MLC slots, the CM may nominate his office aide Desaparthi Srinivas, and another party leader from Nizamabad next week.