Is a merger between TRS and Congress likely?

A crucial meeting of the Telangana Rastra Samithi to decide the political future of Telangana will be held on Tuesday at Hyderabad. Sources say that the popular mood in the party is that they should not merge with the Congress. Vicky Nanjappa reports

There are two very crucial points that the TRS makes ahead of this meeting. First, they are not in favour of a merger with the Grand Old Party, and second, they are not in talks with the Bharatiya Janata Party at the state or the national level.

K T Rama Rao, son of supremo of the TRS, K Chandrasekara Rao, tells rediff.com that the popular mood in the party is definitely against a merger.

“Let me also tell you for sure that we are not in talks with the BJP or an alliance,” he says.

This is however the last ditch attempt being made by the TRS to put forth its conditions before the Congress. The Congress is clear that it wants nothing but a merger.

Congress Member of Parliament Madhu Yashki Goud from Telangana says that KCR cannot demand to be the chief minister.

“One needs to understand the locus standi before claiming a post. Let us not forget that it is the Congress which took the risk and formed Telangana. Where was KCR at the time the Bill was being debated in Parliament?  People know fully well that had it not been for Congress president Sonia Gandhi, the state would have never been formed. The popular mood is in the favour of the Congress in Telangana. Let us see what the TRS has to say and we will wait for the outcome of the meeting later,” Goud says.

On the other hand, sources say that the TRS in all likelihood will merge with the Congress since it has very few options left. The TRS will be risking its political future in case it does not merge with the Congress, sources point out. 

During the KCR and Sonia meeting, the former was clearly told that the Congress wants nothing but a merger and is not agreeable to an alliance.

The Congress has also made it clear to KCR that he cannot claim the post of chief minister as the Congress does not have that tradition of announcing its CM candidate prior to elections. The Congress however is ready to make him the Telangana Congress Pradesh chief and also the chief campaign manager in case he agrees to merge his party.

The meeting, which is to be held at 3 pm will focus largely on the merger issue. In case KCR decides against a merger then he would seek an alliance with the Congress and demand that there be a seat sharing arrangement in the state of Telangana.