Lite byte: Power game in Munugode byelection
No gloom, Lotus shall bloom!
‘Operation Lotus’ has raised many eyebrows with some questioning its authenticity, others blasting the BJP and cynics wondering what’s new about it. Whatever the truth, what is on everyone’s mind is its possible impact on the November 3 Munugode bypoll. TRS leaders, including its chief K Chandrasekhar Rao, appear convinced that the result is a foregone conclusion.
BJP leaders, though, are optimistic. State party chief Bandi Sanjay’s dramatics at Yadadri and the strong pushback to the TRS onslaught show the party is in no mood to back down.
“We received a survey report just last night. We are two per cent ahead of the TRS,” a confident BJP leader told us, asserting that the farmhouse raid, if anything, has given the party a little more mileage.
“Before the episode, TRS had four per cent lead,” he claimed. Well, politicians for sure are a different species.
Art of the deal
We are not talking about Donald Trump! The wheeling-dealing in our politics could prove a bit too much even for him! While luring leaders has become quite common, the lurid details of these deals are not so. If one were to assume that Op Lotus is the real deal in action, one could be forgiven to expect some finesse. That too, if the parties involved are PhD holders.
“The TRS is adept at it and so is the BJP. The only ones who looked amateurish are the Swamis!” joked a well-placed source.
Munugode matters
As the Munugode byelection has become a prestige issue for the ruling TRS which is leaving no stone unturned to win it, the party’s GHMC Corporators are also chipping in their bit. Along with their wives, the corporators from the State capital are doing door-to-door campaigns in the constituency for the TRS candidate, Kusukuntla Prabhakar Reddy.
They are requesting the voters to vote for the TRS if they want the all-around development of the constituency. Notably, two senior ministers from Hyderabad, Talasani Srinivas Yadav and Ch Malla Reddy are making their presence felt by visiting the constituency every day.
The horse rider
Revanth Reddy, whose name literally means horse rider in Sanskrit, was seen running like a pro beside Rahul Gandhi on Sunday. Both the leaders, who are in their early 50s, are fit as a fiddle, competing with kids. While it was fun, papam Revanth is running literally and figuratively too.
What with campaigning for the Munugode bypoll and ensuring the success of Rahul’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, he is facing an acid test. But Revanth being Revanth, he claimed recently that this is an “opportunity to showcase his prowess.”
He does have a knack for wriggling himself out of trouble. Let us see if lady luck smiles on this political equestrian, and athlete yet again. One more thing. While others were sparring over horse trading, the Congress State chief was on horseback, focused on his goal.
Inputs: Kalyan Tholeti, B Kartheek, Bachan Jeet Singh