The bypolls to 12 Assembly constituencies in Telangana,scheduled to be held tomorrow,are being seen as an acid test for the three principal political players in the region. The bypolls were necessitated as the MLAs 10 from TRS and one each from BJP and TDP resigned last December in support of their demand for a separate state. The constituencies where the bypolls will be held are: Siddipet,Sircilla,Vemulavada,Huzurabad,Chennur,Sirpur,Macherial,Korutla,Warangal (West),Yellaredy,Dharmapuri and Nizamabad (Urban). For the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS),it is a do-or-die election,while the Congress is out to prove that the Telangana sentiment is a mere flash in the pan. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP),on the other hand,is hoping to capture some seats that it lost in the last election due to a disastrous tie-up with TRS and Left parties. It was with the elections in mind that TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu raked up the Babhali barrage issue which has a direct bearing on Telanganas water supply. The TDP is hoping to make up for its loss of credibility as a result of its volte face on the Telangana issue. Naidu,who had initially agreed to support statehood for the region,backtracked when the Centre asked the Andhra MLAs to pass a resolution in the Assembly in favour of a separate Telangana last December. TRS THE TRS is hoping to reap the rewards of K Chandrasekhar Raos fast-unto-death which resulted in the Centre setting up the Srikrishna Committee to look into the Telangana demand. With both Congress and TDP throwing their hats in the ring,the TRS was forced to go on the backfoot. KCR upped the ante by accusing the TDP and Congress of political and moral bankruptcy for reneging on their initial assurances not to contest as a gesture of solidarity for the Telangana cause. He is again stoking the Telangana fires by referring to a great war if the Srikrishna Committee recommends anything other than a separate state. TRS has reason to worry. It won only 10 seats in the May 2009 elections,less than the 26 seats it won in May 2004 elections. This is the third time TRS MLAs quit for Telangana,and when elections are held the tally has gone down. From 26 seats in 2004 it came down to 10 in 2009. No one knows if we can retain the 10 seats in this by-elections. Of the 10,six TRS MLAs won with very slender margins in 2009, said a top TRS leader. KCRs son K T Rama Rao himself scraped through with a margin of just 170 votes in Sircilla constituency with TRS rebel K Mahendra Reddy giving him a tough fight. In fact,KCR is no longer confident that his party will retain all the 10 seats that his party MLAs resigned. The TRS has re-nominated all its former MLAs in 10 Assembly constituencies and given ticket to former TDP MLA C Ramesh in Vemulawada who had later joined the TRS. It has decided not to contest in Nizamabad (Urban) constituency,where it will support BJP candidate Endala Lakshminarayana,who resigned in favour of the Telangana state demand. Congress THE main aim of the Congress is to make inroads into TRS strongholds so that the party is left with very little political base to lead the Telangana movement. The pro-Telangana agitation stoked by TRS almost derailed the Rosaiah-led Congress government and forced the Centre to constitute the Srikrishna Committee to look into the demand. The party has renominated most of the candidates who contested and lost in 2009. Notable among them are AP Congress Committee president D Srinivas from Nizamabad (Urban),former energy minister Mohammed Ali Shabbir from Yellaredy,former minister G Vinod from Chennur,and former MP Indrakaran Reddy from Sirpur. D Srinivas,who in spite of being APCC president has been relegated to the background as he lost from Nizamabad (Urban) during the last elections,is looking to make a comeback. If he wins he is not only expecting a cabinet berth but is also hoping to create a faction to counter Y S Jaganmohan Reddy. Congress candidates lost narrowly in the 2009 elections. Irrespective of whether the Telangana sentiment prevails or not,the party will put up a tough fight, said D Srinivas. TDP TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu who still rues his decision to form a maha kutami or grand alliance comprising TDP,TRS and Left parties ahead of the 2009 elections,feels that the party can win at least half-a- dozen seats in the bypolls. In the last elections,as part of the seat-sharing arrangement,TDP left 47 seats to the TRS,while the CPI and CPM contested in 30 seats. The TRS performed dismally,winning only 10 seats,while Left parties won five seats. There is a feeling in the TDP that if the party had contested in all the constituencies without going for seat-sharing,it would have got many more seats. This time the TDP is contesting all the 12 seats,and we hope to win at many places, said former MP K Yerrannaidu. Till last week,the party had no poll plank,with Naidus U-turn on a separate Telangana state leaving it in an embarrassing situation. However,it regained some lost prestige after Naidu barged into neighbouring Maharashtra over the Babhali dam construction issue. The drama that unfolded across the border in Nanded district of Maharashtra where the dam is coming up was not lost on Telangana which stands to lose a lot of water due to the dam. The dam affects the flow of water to Sriram Sagar project which is the lifeline of Telangana districts. The party has nominated several former ministers and MLAs. Two new faces are software engineer P Kishore,vice-president of Telugu Desam Sanketika Nippunula Sangham,who is contesting from Sircilla,and N Narayana,ZPTC member who is contesting from Dharmapuri.
