Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao on Monday met his Kerala counterpart Pinarayi Vijayan. Sources at the CMO said the two discussed the current political situation. Rao, who is in Kerala for a two-day visit with his family members, visited Vijayan at his official residence in Thiruvananthapuram. TRS MPs Santhosh Kumar and Vinod Kumar were also present during the meeting. Rao would stay near Kovalam for the next two days before moving to Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu on May 8 where he plans to meet leaders of the AIADMK and the DMK. Lok Sabha Elections 2019 | Polling schedule, results date, constituency-wise results, how to check live counting Rao’s meeting with Vijayan assumes significance as the TRS chief has been talking about a non-Congress, non-BJP federal front. And if the CPM-led LDF, which is contesting all 20 seats in Kerala, can send a substantial number of MPs to Parliament, Vijayan would have a significant say in deciding the party’s post-poll agenda. A Telangana government official said, “The CM will discuss the ongoing elections and contemporary politics with CMs of both the states.” KCR is also scheduled to visit temples in Srirangam and Rameshwaram. Apart from meeting Tamil Nadu CM E Palanisamy, he will meet DMK president M K Stalin on May 13 at his residence. The TRS chief has earlier met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and BSP supremo Mayawati and discussed the formation of a front. After achieving a landslide victory in the Telangana Assembly elections in December, KCR had floated the idea of an alliance of regional parties without the Congress and the BJP. In a week-long tour starting December 23, KCR met leaders of several regional parties, including Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. Hyderabad-based AIMIM headed by Asaduddin Owaisi has already declared support for the proposed front. The YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) is also an ally of the TRS. KCR has also interacted with leaders of Dalit, Muslim and Christian organisations, and farmers’ associations. According to sources, on the basis of an assessment that regional parties will perform well in the ongoing elections, KCR is meeting regional leaders to give shape to the proposed front. Stating that a national front was possible without the Congress or the BJP, KCR had earlier said, “A third front is necessary to ignite change in governance. People want a change after 70 years.” “In the last 70 years, the political system, whether ruled by the Congress or BJP, has failed to deliver, has failed miserably to bring a qualitative change in the lives of the people. The country is now desperate for a qualitative change in politics.”
