The Great AP Political Tamasha

Desaraju Surya
HYDERABAD: Welcome to the “great Andhra Pradesh political tamasha.”
It is high on intensity and low on sanity. There are multiple actors in this daily play but each has his own script and screenplay. Everyone tries to outdo the other and score political brownie points but end up nowhere really.
The principal actors in this sordid drama are leaders of the ruling Congress, the main opposition Telugu Desam, the other opposition Praja Rajyam and the separatist Telangana Rashtra Samiti. The extra parts are handled by BJP, CPI and CPM while Lok Satta Party has an insignificant cameo.
The political soap opera has been running for long and, like a never-ending television serial, is mostly-televised but with lots of amusement.
Along with the own script, each actor has an exclusive (television) channel to showcase his act without others stealing the limelight. Of course, the actors are ably aided by some channels which orchestrate the agenda that suits “their” interest.
One actor (Chiranjeevi) is sulking, though, since he feels no channel is leaving him any screen space, overlooking his exploits. Hence, he too is seeking to set up his own (television) shop for better marketing.
Interestingly, the Congress’ act in itself has all the features of a unique potboiler. Though the Congress characters are supposed to be on one side, they fight each other adding more spice to drama.
Congress leaders from Telangana spit venom at their own ministers from Andhra-Rayalaseema region for opposing the bifurcation of the state. The so-called Y S Jagan camp is at loggerheads not only with Chief Minister K Rosaiah but also with the party high command. Supporters of Rosaiah are “goading” the “impatient” Kadapa MP by digging out the “misdeeds” committed during his father Y S Rajasekhara Reddy’s regime, much to the discomfiture of the young man who is unwilling to settle for anything less than the Chief Minister’s chair.
Jagan’s “loyalists” wouldn’t take kindly to such denigration of their departed leader (YSR) and would repulse any attack.
Nevertheless, the bigwigs “attached” to Rosaiah are busy pulling the skeletons out of the YSR regime’s cupboard.
This brings cheer to the opposition camp as it gets more ammunition to step up its offensive against the enemy (Congress). The Telugu Desam, in the past five years, has lost no opportunity to expose the brazen corruption in the Congress rule and is now getting pep to its drive from the very rulers themselves.
A case in point is the unearthing of a “Rs 10,000 crore scam”, dated back to the YSR regime, by two senior Congress MLAs D L Ravindra Reddy and J C Diwakar Reddy. Now, other senior Congress leaders are readying for more such “exposés”, making the job easier for the TDP.
The Praja Rajyam president K Chiranjeevi is a widely-acclaimed actor before he donned the political greasepaint. In the political arena, however, he is proving a mismatch to the other actors. His party is about to celebrate its second anniversary but Chiranjeevi is apparently in a serious state of confusion.
On one hand, he is strongly critical of the state government over its policies but, on the other, is building close ties with the ruling party. Chiranjeevi is currently on a tour of the state to reinvent himself as a political leader but unable to decide who is his rival or what is his objective.
The TRS has a one-point agenda: of achieving statehood for Telangana. Having achieved a landslide in the recent by-elections, the separatist force has become more ferocious. While fighting the government on certain administrative issues, the TRS has turned its ire more on the TDP leading to a slanging match between leaders of the two parties.
TDP supremo Chandrababu Naidu is forced to do multi-tasking these days. Keeping his own party, which has split vertically on regional lines, intact has become his main task. As Leader of Opposition, taking on the Congress is his mandate but he is also forced to contend with the PRP and the TRS that have stepped up the attack against him, all at a time.
The two Left parties, luckily, are on Chandrababu’s side, helping him combat the Congress.
Lok Satta Party chief N Jayaprakash Narayan, who quit a cushy IAS position and became an MLA, to cleanse the political rot, unfortunately, finds himself lost in the crowd.
Counting on its national stature, the BJP is trying to make its presence felt in the state but with little impact.
The curtains aren’t yet down and there are no commercial breaks even. Thus, the saga continues…..