In no hurry: KCR on federal front after non-starter Delhi visit, hits out at Naidu
The Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief expressed hope that there would be significant progress in the process for formation of federal front by the coming Lok Sabha elections and the exercise would continue even after it.
Telangana chief minister and TRS president K Chandrasekhar Rao on Saturday said that he was not in a hurry to build a federal front of regional parties. but exuded confidence that it would become a reality in the coming days.
“The proposed federal front is not a hotchpotch of a few political parties to grab power. It is a mission based on a scientific economic model. We have just started the process of talking to various parties and we shall continue to our negotiations in the coming days,” KCR, as the leader is popularly known, said at a press conference at his camp office.
The Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief expressed hope that there would be significant progress in the process for formation of federal front by the coming Lok Sabha elections and the exercise would continue even after the elections. “We are yet to formulate the agenda for the federal front. We are striving to build a consensus among the like-minded parties in this direction,” he said.
The TRS chief said he had enough patience to bring regional parties together under ‘Federal Front’ umbrella. ‘’I have patience and I am waiting for right time, it’s a time taking exercise. I need time to convince people.’’
Terming his effort as a ‘Maha Yagnam,’ KCR said he was also proposing to take the Left parties into the federal front fold. “I am in touch with Left parties also. I spoke to (Communist Party of India (Marxist) chief) Sitaram Yechury and (Kerala chief minister) Pinarayi Vijayan,” he said.
When asked whether he was assured of any support from Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and Bahujan Samaj Party supremo Mayawati to join his front, he shot back: “Why do you need assurance and on what? Discussions are happening and there is no need to divulge information about my meetings.”
He also said that the pro-farmer policies initiated by his government in the last four years like Rythu Bandhu and Rytu Bima had caught the attention of the entire nation. “Several states have evinced in Rythu Bandhu, a direct cash transfer scheme to help farmers before the agricultural season. There are reports that even the NDA government is contemplating following this model,” he said.
Coming down heavily on his Andhra Pradesh counterpart and Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu for running down his federal front efforts, KCR said he wondered whether Naidu had any talent to understand the spirit behind the proposed front. “Does he have any knowledge about the economic model I have proposed? In what way he is concerned if I meet Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik or somebody else?” he asked.
Describing Naidu as the “dirtiest politician” in the entire country, the TRS president said he was surprised how people of Andhra Pradesh were bearing such a “shameless character” as their chief minister. “He does not have consistency in his policies. Four years ago, he called upon the people of the state not to allow Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to step into their state. After sailing with Prime Minister Narendra Modi for four years, he is now running after Gandhi. Now, he is asking the people to boycott Modi. He rejected the demand for Special Category Status to AP earlier and now he is demanding the same,” he said.
Claiming Naidu was “not a leader of character but just a manager”, KCR accused the Andhra CM of being able to manage only through false propaganda. “On one hand, he accuses the Centre of not giving a penny to his state and on the other, he makes tall claims through a series of white papers that he had developed the state on all fronts. Why is this bluff? I am sure he is going to face a humiliating defeat in the coming elections,” he said.