Revanth Reddy & Rahul: The RRR Behind Congress’s ‘Naacho Naacho’ in Telangana

The Congress’s victory in Telangana with 67 seats is perceived as a direct result of the RRR — Rahul Gandhi and Revanth Reddy — chemistry, which seems to have made a significant impact on the votes and minds of the people of this state.

As the win became clear, Reddy, in a press conference, said, “The Congress has come to power in Telangana with the support of Rahul Gandhi. I thank Rahul Gandhi for showing faith in me."

REDDY-GANDHI JODI EFFECT

Similar to Sikkim, political analysts believe that Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra, combined with Reddy’s assertive revival plan for the Telangana Congress seemed to work like magic.

As a senior Congress leader and former state party chief Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) chief Ponnala Lakshmaiah told News18: “During the yatra, the effect of Bharat Jodo Yatra would be seen similar to how Mahatma Gandhi’s Dandi Yatra accelerated the freedom movement and led India to its independence."

“The fight is against the divisive forces in this country, the fight is for the unity of people, ensuring jobs at a time when the country is battling with unemployment and fighting price rise that is affecting every single home. This will be a game-changer," he said.

Political analyst Palwai Raghavendra explained that the Bharat Jodo phenomenon had an impact on the cadres getting pumped up, while the Revanth Reddy factor also contributed to the party getting a much firmer foothold.

“Bharat Jodo is certainly one of the many factors that helped the Congress; Revanth Reddy contributed to the impact, and then came the timing of leaders from other parties joining the Congress coupled with the anti-incumbency that was brewing as a strong undercurrent. The final factor was how the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost its steam in the run-up to the assembly election, which immensely helped the Congress consolidate the anti-incumbency factor in their favour."

AICC spokesperson and Congress leader Dolly Sharma points out that before Bharat Jodo Yatra, the Congress had been weak. “When people joined the cause of Bharat Jodi Yatra and saw how the Congress and Rahul Gandhi ji were earnestly fighting for the rights of people, be it unemployment, inflation, or social justice, the momentum for the Congress began to gain speed. People were fed up with Bharat Rashtra Samithi’s chief and Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) and his family politics and were looking for a change. The padayatra gave that added boost to the Congress local unit which needs to be charged and ready to face elections, and now you see the result," Sharma told News18.

REVIVAL OF THE CONGRESS’S ACHHE DIN

Since 2021, the Congress has re-emerged as a challenge to Rao’s BRS, a noteworthy achievement for the party as it is considered in the second place as well as less influential in states such as West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Delhi where the regional parties have a firm hold, the kind that the BRS has been having for a decade now.

Reddy not only shouldered the responsibility of bringing the Congress closer to power in a state, one that eluded the party since the formation of Telangana in 2014, but he also accepted the challenge thrown at him by the party to take on KCR from Kamareddy, in addition to fielding him in Kodangal.

If we trace the Congress’s performance from the time K Chandrashekar Rao assumed the role of Chief Minister of Telangana until June 2021, when Reddy took over as the president of Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee, replacing senior Congressman N Uttam Kumar Reddy, the party not only acknowledged defeat to the BRS, but also experienced low morale. Many leaders had almost fallen silent, fearing backlash or action from the ruling BRS (formerly known as TRS).

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Reddy has fought a dual battle since then until this election. One, to ensure that he kept his team united as he assumed the post of president of the state unit after leaving the Telugu Desam Party (TDP). The second being battling accusations of being “autocratic," leading to senior leaders like Dasoju Shravan Kumar exiting from the party, while marking a significant turnaround for himself as a candidate of the party in Telangana where the morale had been in an absolute low.

During an interaction, Revanth Reddy referred to it as the advent of “achhe din" in Telangana, expressing that they not only aim to establish a “prajala sarkar’ (people’s government), but also to diminish the once-powerful BRS to a mere few seats.

Analyst Raghavendra also points out that Rahul Gandhi, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, and the Congress leadership stuck to their choice of Reddy despite resistance from local leaders.

“Rahul Gandhi also learned from his past mistakes. Bringing in Charanjit Channi in place of Amarinder Singh in Punjab proved disastrous for the Congress. The same being the case in Assam when Tarun Gogoi was given another term when the MLAs were backing Himanta Biswa Sarma. Rahul did not want to repeat this mistake this time in Telangana," Raghavendra observed.

The two-time MLA from Kodangal (2009, 2014), Reddy left the TDP as he was accused in a cash-for-votes case following an alleged attempt to bribe a nominated MLA during a Legislative Council election. In his first election as a Congress candidate in 2018 from Kodangal, he suffered a defeat, but quickly rebounded, winning as the Congress MP from Malkajgiri in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

KEEPING THEIR FLOCK TOGETHER

Despite having a clear majority in 2014 and 2018, the BRS orchestrated defections within the Congress. Following the 2014 and 2018 Assembly polls, the Congress faced significant setbacks, despite securing 21 seats in 2014, seven members switched allegiance to the BRS.

In the 2018 elections, the Congress won 19 seats, but within six months, 12 of them joined the BRS. This led to the Congress losing its status as the principal opposition in the Legislative Assembly. This time, both Rahul Gandhi and Revanth Reddy have sought the help of Karnataka’s deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar to ensure that their flock remains united, and every attempt to poach leaders is thwarted.