HYDERABAD: Four days after opposition parties had displayed their unity against the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre by attending the swearing-in by JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy as Karnataka Chief Minister in Bengaluru, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao left for New Delhi on Sunday. Though the state government announced that the visit was aimed at getting Presidential assent to the new zonal system of employment in the state, KCR’s Delhi yatra has once again brought his proposal to form a Federal Front with regional parties into focus.
TRS leaders are of the view that the Chief Minister, during his stay in the national capital, might make efforts to get the support of regional parties for his attempt to bring about a qualitative change in the country by uniting various like-minded political parties. As this is KCR’s first visit to the national capital after his announcement that he would form a front at the national level, political circles are curious on the meetings the TRS boss will hold in Delhi.
As Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav and JMM leader Hemant Soren had graced the Kumaraswamy’s oath-taking ceremony along with UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and AICC president Rahul Gandhi, there is an opinion within TRS that the scope to form a non-BJP and non-Congress front by KCR has reduced now. Against this backdrop, KCR’s likely meetings in Delhi will be closely watched by political parties in the state.
In fact, the Chief Minister had announced earlier that he would organise meetings with retired all India services officers and financial experts in Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad to elicit their views on preparing an agenda for the proposed front in order to improve the living standards of farmers and other sections of people across the country. But the proposal has so far not been put into practice. Some TRS leaders say that CM’s Delhi meetings might chalk out an action plan in this regard.CMO sources said that besides calling on President Ramnath Kovind, Rao will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi. At his meeting with Modi, Chief Minister is expected to raise pending issues and unfulfilled promises with regard to bifurcation.
KCR’s action plan
KCR is likely to request the Prime Minister to take steps to give Centre’s nod for the bill on enhancement of reservation to Muslims and STs in the state. KCR will meet various Union ministers to extract more funds for the state, sources said