BRS will launch another agitation for Telangana: KCR

Hyderabad, June  (IANS) Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) president K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday said the party would soon launch a new agitation to protect the interests of people of Telangana.

Addressing a meeting at BRS headquarters Telangana Bhavan on the occasion of Telangana formation day, the former chief minister said the party would launch the agitation with new strategies for Telangana.

He made it clear that despite recent electoral setbacks, the BRS remains committed to its duty to protect the interests and rights of Telangana people.

The former chief minister said that the political outcomes would not deter the party's mission.

"Elections may come and go but our first and foremost duty is to work for the people," said KCR, who was addressing the first state formation day celebration after losing power to Congress.

Amid loud cheers by his supporters, the BRS chief said he had stopped using my walking stick.

"I am strong enough to take up another agitation," he said.

The BRS chief likened BRS to a huge tree which is resilient. Admitting that there was disappointment over the defeat in Assembly elections, he said after he launched bus yatra the campaign for during Lok Sabha elections he received the same passionate support from the people that he had received during the Telangana statehood movement.

He pointed out that BRS lost the election with a difference of just 1.08 per cent vote share. He claimed that BRS during its rule, strengthened the rural economy.

"The pink flag was born to protect Telangana. Politics is ever-changing. Politics is not about just being in power. Our duty is to work for the sake of people," he said.

Dismissing notions of BRS vanishing from Telangana politics, KCR stated that the BRS is poised for a comeback and the Congress government's days are numbered. If elections were held now, the BRS would win 105 Assembly seats, he claimed.

In the Assembly elections held in November 2023, BRS lost power as it could win only 39 seats in the 119-member Assembly.

The BRS chief congratulated BRS candidate Naveen Kumar Reddy on winning the MLC by-election in the home district of Chief Minister Revanth Reddy.

He said while Revanth Reddy had vowed to win the by-election with 200 votes majority, the BRS secured the seat with over 100 votes.

KCR termed Exit Polls a 'big gamble' and pointed out that all organisations gave different numbers.

"One exit poll says BRS will get 11 seats while another it will win 2-3 seats. This is a big gamble," he said, making it clear that the party's focus remains on public welfare rather than political gains.

KCR slammed the Congress government over failing to deliver on its promises. He remarked that the Congress is yet to cope up with the unexpected victory.

He claimed that people are angry over the government's failure to effectively deliver services.

KCR, who had floated TRS (now BRS) in 2001 to revive the Telangana movement, reflected on the long journey of the movement.

He believes that the 1969 movement failed only due to a lack of a strategy to counter the then rulers. He said people would remain indebted to all those who fought for the cause.

The former chief minister claimed that the movement was revived in 1999 and not in 2001.

"Remembering those times still brings tears to my eyes. Whenever someone raised his voice for Telangana, he was ridiculed and accused of hankering for posts and money," he said.

KCR recalled that the then Assembly Speaker had said that Telangana word should not be used in the House. Even the Telangana dialect was ridiculed, he said.