Until the recent assembly elections in Telangana which were held in December last year, Bharatiya Rastra Samithi party president Kalvakuntla Chandra Sekhar Rao was harbouring the dream of calling shots at the national level with his style of politicking. Having won the state elections with a decisive mandate for two consecutive terms in 2014 and 2018, KCR was desperate to expand his party base beyond Telangana to play a bigger role in the Opposition bloc of NDA in the coming years. He even appointed prominent leaders on behalf of his party in neighbouring states like Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. The way KCR was going all out against the Prime Minister on various issues before the assembly elections in Telangana made leaders from various parties and people across the country notice him.
Unfortunately, the unexpected drubbing from the Congress party in the assembly elections demoralized the BRS to the core. This defeat came as a big shocker to KCR who didn’t even acknowledge the result in front of the media and straight away left the Pragati Bhavan in disappointment. What was more embarrassing for KCR and his supporters was the humiliating defeat he tasted in one of the two seats where he contested in the elections. This was the first time in his four-decade political career, that KCR lost an election. He didn’t even attend the first assembly session after the formation of the new government due to hip surgery following his slip a few days after the election results.
Even before recovering from the ignominious defeat, KCR’s party was rocked with a series of deflections by its pivotal leaders. The party has been receiving back-to-back shocks with more leaders seeking shelter under the BJP and the Congress in the last couple of weeks. Many other leaders are likely to jump ship in the coming days.
At a crucial time before the Parliament polls, KCR received another huge setback in the form of his daughter and former MP Kavitha’s arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with her alleged role in the infamous Delhi liquor case. Though KCR’s family claims this was a politically motivated arrest, it will no doubt further deteriorate their image in public.
In just three months, KCR experienced the biggest downfall in his political journey. Like many other seasoned politicians, the current phase is a test of resilience for him and how he bounces back is what needs to be seen.