Early poll in Telangana

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As expected, the Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao has dissolved the State Assembly and gone for an early election. Elections in the State were not due till April-May next year but clearly espying advantage Rao has sought to delink it from the parliamentary poll. His resignation has been accepted and the Assembly dissolved. However, the Election Commission has said the timing of the Assembly poll will be decided with due deliberation and cannot be dictated by Rao. It is almost certain that the Telangana poll would be held along with the Assembly polls in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram later this year. Confident of re-election, Rao virtually launched his election campaign, attacking Rahul Gandhi in very harsh terms.  The Opposition parties are weak in Telangana, with the TDP enjoying pockets of influence whereas the BJP support is confined to the Hyderabad-Secunderabad region.

The Congress could be in a position to offer a viable challenge if it could gather all smaller groups such as the Left, the Telangana Joint Action Committee, JD(U), etc under one umbrella. Particularly, if the TDP and the Congress could team up against the TRS, Rao could have a fight on his hands. However, as of now the dice is loaded in favour of the incumbent, even if he has made the party and government virtually into a family affair.