K Chandrasekhar Rao: From statehood movement leader to likely CM of Telangana

HYDERABAD: After steering the separate Telangana statehood agitation for well over a decade, Telangana Rashtra Samiti ( TRS) president K Chandrasekhar Rao ( KCR) has turned into a full-fledged politician, even as the state of Telangana all set to become a reality on June 2.

The metamorphosis of KCR, who chose to keep his party's identity intact by refusing to merge it with the Congress or even have an electoral alliance with it, could not have been more dramatic.

After having "achieved" separate statehood for Telangana despite being the sole active MP of his party (his MP colleague Vijayashanti turned a rebel following differences with him), KCR, who proved to be a shrewd strategist, played his cards well.

He said that his party would no longer be a "party for a movement" but a political party in the true sense.

Some political analysts claim that he ensured that the anti-incumbency against the Congress, did not affect his party's performance at the hustings, though he announced later that the UPA would be his "first choice" to extend support, in the event of a fractured verdict after Lok Sabha elections.

With his mission of a separate Telangana state achieved, he chanted the development and welfare mantra, advocating "new approach and new policies" for the state.

He made several election promises including reservations for minorities, free power for farmers and two bedroom houses for the poor.

The realisation of a separate Telangana state itself is a historic achievement for the 60-year-old Telangana leader, who has received the major credit for keeping separate statehood movement alive and kicking, especially during the last decade.