BRS Claims Growing Confidence in Telangana Municipal Polls Amid Alleged Misuse of Power

Hyderabad:Despite the Congress winning over 60 out of the 116 municipalities in Telangana, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president KT Rama Rao (KTR) on Friday, February 13, said that the verdict reflects the “growing confidence” of people in his party. In a press conference, KTR stated that the BRS secured significant victories in the Telangana municipal polls despite alleged misuse of money power, administrative machinery and intimidation tactics by the ruling Congress. He claimed that in the recent panchayat elections, nearly 40 per cent of gram panchayats and more than 4,000 sarpanch positions were won by BRS-backed candidates. Comparing the results with the 2020 municipal elections, KTR said that while the BRS had then won 122 mayor and chairperson posts out of 130, the current results show the party directly winning over 15 municipalities and emerging as the single-largest party in around 10 to 15 additional municipalities where it holds decisive influence. Overall, he said, “the party views the results across 117 municipalities as positive and politically significant.” Interestingly, KTR also said that there was political cooperation in the Telangana municipal polls with the Communist Party of India (CPI), which has an official alliance with the ruling Congress in Telangana. The BRS working president claimed that the CPI joined hands with the pink party in certain areas, including Chennur constituency and Kyaathanpally municipality, due to alleged irregularities in Singareni coal operations. He added that the BRS is open to working with secular forces to prevent the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from controlling local bodies. KTR further said that out of 124 municipalities where elections were held, around 30 resulted in hung situations and the BRS registered clear victories in around 15. “Decisions regarding strategy in hung municipalities,” he said, “would be taken after consultations with party president K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) and local leadership, keeping ground realities in mind.”