Revanth Reddy on Thursday became the first Congress Chief Minister of the country’s youngest state, after the Congress wrested power from the Bharatiya Rashtra Samithi in Telangana during the recent Assembly polls. In the process, Reddy was able to get the coveted position despite the claims of many seniors in the party, who till the end, made a desperate bid to convince the High command with their credentials. However, it was crystal clear from the very outset that Revanth Reddy had galvanized the workers into action, and since the past few months, had been predicting the outcome of the crucial election. If the party grapevine is to be believed than Rahul Gandhi had initially thrown his weight behind Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu, who eventually became the deputy CM. However, Reddy’s supporters had made informed the Congress Observers, that if their leader was not made the Chief Minister, it would lead to problems. The matter was escalated to the level of Sonia Gandhi, who after discussing the issue with Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul, gave the final approval for his swearing in. Interestingly, the party has two “outsiders’’ as Chief Ministers in the Southern State, given their original affiliations. If Siddaramaiah, the most popular leader in neighbouring Karnataka had switched to the Congress from Janata Dal (Secular), Reddy has been both with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad, the student wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh and the Telugu Desam Party. Of course, both are now Congress loyalists and have proved that they were also exceptional leaders. Reddy’s election pitch during the polls was that it was his party and Sonia Gandhi, who had given the sanction for the creation of Telangana out of a united Andhra Pradesh and in a sense, she was the “Mother figure’’ of this young State. He had wanted the swearing in to take place on Ms Gandhi’s birthday on December 9th but because of the fast political developments that were unfolding, it was decided to have the swearing in ceremony earlier. For record, it was on December 9th, 2009 that the declaration for the grant of statehood to Telangana was made by P.Chidamabram, even though there was no immediate demand for that at that point of time. The announcement was exploited by K.Chandrasekhar Rao, who was able to pip the Congress to the post of CM on two successive occasions, both in 2014 and in 2019. United Andhra had been a lucky hunting ground for the Congress and in 2004 and 2009, the party got 29 and 33 seats from there enabling it to form the government at the Centre. This feat was achieved, largely because of the efforts of YS Rajsekhar Reddy, whose emergence had upset the ambitions of many leaders within the Congress. YSR, died prematurely in a mysterious Helicopter crash a few months ahead of the declaration of the separate state and was succeeded by K. Rosiah, a one-time critic of Indira Gandhi, and whose appointment raised many eyebrows, as he belonged to a caste which had negligible presence in the State. The decision of carving out a separate state proved very costly for the Congress and it was unable to find its feet for virtually ten years. Ironically, YSR’s son, Jaganmohan is the Chief Minister of neighbouring Andhra and his daughter, Sharmila, wields considerable influence in Telangana. The Congress win was possible because of the shift in Muslim vote and because of the resurgence of the Reddys in the rural areas. The Muslims who had always aligned with KCR, were peeved with him because in their perception, he had struck a deal with the BJP, to save his daughter Kavitha from being arrested. Kavitha had been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate in the Delhi Liquor scam but was allowed to go after being interrogated for several hours. A significant point is that the newly sworn in ministry which has 12 members, does not so far have even a single Muslim face and only two women. The reports are that a prominent Mulsim leader may be administered the oath, after his name gets cleared by the High Command shortly. There could also be scope for an increased Reddy representation in the six vacancies that are there. Both united Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka have stood by the Congress even when it has fared badly in the North. In 1977, when the Congress got only three seats in the Northern States—Udhampur, Nagaur and Chindwara, it was both Andhra and Karnataka where the party survived and helped in its overall revival. However, at that time, the Congress was led by Indira Gandhi and had a robust organization. In the present times, its main limitation is because of its weak organizational structure and this is where it is at a disadvantage while facing the BJP. The party cadres are enthused in Telangana and are expecting that the new regime would live up to the expectations of the people. The party has to be also cautious that a majority of four is not broken down by its opponents to unseat it from power. Revanth Reddy deserves full marks and in his speeches so far has been proudly acknowledging the popular support he has received. He has been critical of KCR and has praised his relative, the late Jaipal Reddy and former PM, P.V.Narasimha Rao, who was the first and only Telugu Head of central government from the State. It is going to be a big challenge for him to perform and consolidate the Congress position.
