Will Chiranjeevi boost the Congresss fortunes,or help the opposition?
Written by The Indian Express
2 min read
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Chiranjeevi is nothing if not a directors actor. And so,it stands to sense that right after he walked into the Congresss tent,one of his first actions was to trash the YSR years,saying that the rampant corruption he observed then was what drove him into politics. Thats a thought that only the new guy would be permitted to voice and one that the Congress would be only too happy to see put out there,as it contends with the giant hole left by YSRs death and the trouble created by his son,Jaganmohan Reddy.
With the co-option of Chiranjeevi,the Congress thinks that it has found a measure of much-needed charisma,one that might even extend to other southern states. Its revealing of the Congresss approach to coalition-building,that it is more comfortable accommodating a high-wattage personality than melding a significant part of the opposition as YSR used to. Chiranjeevi thinks that he and his scattered party have found a stable organisation. Despite the crowds he gathered and the curiosity around him,the Praja Rajyam Partys numbers have thinned drastically since the 2009 election,with only 18 MLAs. Merging with the Congress,and its attendant benefits,is the best way for Chiranjeevi to consolidate his political career.
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The merger may give the Congress an opportunity at last to cheerily change the subject,but will the merger really benefit both parties as planned? Chiranjeevi is being projected as the great hope for Kapus,one that the Congress can afford to aim for after having placated the powerful Reddy segment with its chief ministerial choice. But given the political insecurity of his predecessor,CM Kiran Kumar Reddy may be wary of Chiranjeevi taking away attention from him. Second,Chiranjeevis loyalties are clearly with coastal Andhra,and he has been vocally anti-Telangana,which will make it yet more difficult for the Congress to continue straddling the fence. It may be too early to predict the effect of Chiranjeevis merger on the spectrum of opposition forces,but Chandrababu Naidu too may be breathing just a little easier.
