HYDERABAD: Not taking any chances, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao has decided to stay put in Munugode for three days to devise strategies to beat the BJP which is now challenging the TRS. Rao, on his return to Hyderabad on Wednesday after staying in Delhi for the last eight days, called a meeting with Ministers, senior officials, the DGP and other police officials where he discussed the arrangements made for the by-election.
Rao will stay in Munugode during the last three days of campaigning from October 29 to 31. He has already consulted his party leaders on the TRS prospects and the grey areas that had to be addressed – like the ruffled feelings of BCs after a Reddy (K Prabhakar Reddy) was fielded as TRS candidate.
Sources said that Rao will reach the Munugode constituency in a huge rally from Hyderabad and will address a public meeting on October 30 at Chandur. Later, the CM will stay in Munugode constituency till October 31 advising the pink party cadre on micro-level campaigning.
As Munugode is the first election that TRS is facing after it had rebranded itself as ‘BRS’, Rao wants to win the seat with a wide margin and send a signal to the BJP that he is a force to reckon with even at the national level. Meanwhile, BJP and Congress too have decided to pull out all stops to clinch the byelection. The saffron party is planning to conduct a public meeting in Munugode which is likely to be attended by party chief JP Nadda or Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Though BJP has so far not announced the date, it is likely that it would be held either on October 29 or 30.
The Congress also plans to intensify its campaign in the last 10 days. As Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat jodo Yatra will enter Telangana on October 23, it will lend some buoyancy to campaigning. The party leaders plan to send cadres from Munugode to participate in the Bharat Jodo Yatra so that they return to campaigning in the constituency fully energised.