Why are KCR and PM Modi taking jibes at each other?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday took a dig at Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao while he was addressing a rally in Hyderabad. 'Dynastic politics is the biggest enemy of democracy. Development begins when dynastic politics end,' he said.
KCR, who gave the PM's visit a miss as he left for Bengaluru, fired back saying, 'There's a lot of 'bhaashanbaazi' (speeches) and promises, but what is happening in reality? Industries are closing down, GDP is falling and inflation is rising.'
The tussle between KCR and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is not new. But the attacks started to be more direct when KCR skipped receiving the PM in Hyderabad in February this year.
We take a look at why KCR and PM Modi are taking swipes at each other.
THIRD FRONT
KCR has been on a 'Bharat Yatra' (India tour) rallying the opposition parties, other than the Congress, to form an alliance against the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA). His immediate focus is to defeat the BJP in the race for next President.
KCR had earlier met Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and other opposition leaders.
KCR will now travel to Bengal to meet with CM Mamata Banerjee. After that he will also visit Bihar, where he is planning on meeting both chief minister Nitish Kumar and opposition leader Tejashwi Yadav.
KCR'S NATIONAL DREAMS
In the 20th year of formation of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), KCR had hinted at floating a national party where the stakeholders are likely to be regional parties, reported the Indian Express.
KCR on Thursday met former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda in Bengaluru. He left for Bengaluru hours before PM Modi's Hyderabad visit.
CM Sri KCR addressed the media after meeting with former PM Sri @H_D_Devegowda and former CM Sri @hd_kumaraswamy in Bangalore. pic.twitter.com/lNJVAYyrS4
— TRS Party (@trspartyonline) May 26, 2022
He recalled the time when he visited Bengaluru before the 2018 Karnataka assembly polls. He had said at the time that he would come back for the swearing-in ceremony of HD Kumaraswamy, reported the News Minute. “I was proven right, and he became CM. This time, I assure you, there is going to be a change at the national level. No one can stop it. You will get sensational news in two to three months,” KCR said.
BJP WANTS POWER IN TELANGANA
Telangana is one of the few states in the south where enough people speak Hindi, and yet the BJP has struggled to make inroads here. BJP had shown some strength by winning the Dubbak and Huzurabad assembly seats from the ruling TRS, but the party wants to come to power in the state. And for that to happen, they have to first defeat the man whose efforts led to the formation of the state.
Now that KCR is looking to go national, BJP senses that it is the time to get their position strong in the state for the 2023 assembly elections.
पिछले दिनों अलग अलग चुनावों में भाजपा की जीत इस बात का स्पष्ट संकेत है कि तेलंगाना में अब लोगों ने मन बना लिया है।
— BJP (@BJP4India) May 26, 2022
तेलंगाना में अब अब बदलाव पक्का है। तेलंगाना में अब भाजपा तय है।
- पीएम @narendramodi #TelanganaWithModi pic.twitter.com/XeHSDYqFc0
PM Modi didn't just target KCR for 'dynasty politics', but also took jibes at him for being superstitious. “I believe in science and technology. I also congratulate Yogi Adityanath, who is a saint but does not believe in superstition. We have to save Telangana from such superstitious people,' he said in Hyderabad.
In 2018, KCR had recommended for dissolution of the assembly on September 6 due to his belief in numerology and fascination with number 6, reported News18.