Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comments that Andhra region’s interests were ignored while carving out Telangana have put the Telangana BJP in a spot. Many Telangana BJP leaders feel that by this statement, Modi has given the TRS a stick to beat the party. The party, which till now has claimed that it played a stellar role in the formation of Telangana, is now finding itself in a piquant position.
The party now feels that the TRS would now try to rekindle the somnolent Telangana sentiment and reap the benefits in 2023 elections. The BJP, which has been highlighting the failures of the TRS, will now be at the receiving end, several BJP insiders feel.
The Telangana BJP thinking heads are now trying to build counter-narratives to tackle the TRS onslaught. Both KTR and Harish Rao have already slammed the BJP on Modi’s statement. The TRS has also called for protests across Telangana. It is planning to use this issue to pin down the BJP.
While the statement caused consternation in Telangana, even the Andhra BJP is not happy either. In AP, the general criticism is that if Modi is so sympathetic to AP, why is he not giving special status to Andhra Pradesh. The BJP in AP is finding it hard to deflect criticism. Thus, Modi’s statement has stirred a hornet’s nest in both the Telugu states.
