When might is not always right

Chanakya mentions about three types of success and the ways to achieve it. They are, the success that is attainable firstly, by the power of counsel, secondly, by the power of might, and thirdly, by the power of energy. This simple classification would come in handy to understand what has gone wrong for the ruling TRS at Huzurabad by-elections.

It turned out to be a fight between a political party that adopted the second strategy (usage of might) to pin down an established mass leader belonging to the third category (energy or popularity). In a nutshell, this time around, the use of might failed to deliver the goods.

Eatala Rajender, a trusted lieutenant of TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao and a key minister before being shown the door, emerged victorious solely based on his own strength than the power of the BJP. On the other hand, the ruling party had to cut a sorry figure despite pumping a hell lot of resources and energies to trounce the people's man. The voters, by siding with a 'victim' of brute force, have left some takeaways for the ruling party that took the by-poll as a highly prestigious issue.

The most desirable way of wresting power is by the power of energy. Leaders should make a sincere attempt to address the issues with genuine concern and stand beside general public in thick and thin to win their hearts. The satisfied voter is the real energy or strength of any leader. The brazen money power of the mighty ruling party would prove to be a damp squib before the 'energetic leaders.'

The four-month long political drama enacted by the ruling party to teach Eatala a lesson and his counter strategies have made a complete mockery of democracy. Huzurabad by-poll will remain in the Telangana history as the costliest election till date.

TRS is missing a historic opportunity provided by the mass movement. The party leadership made it very clear on many occasions that it doesn't believe in the first way to achieve success (by the power of counsel). The council of ministers, bureaucracy, advisors, intellectuals, academia and media are the six key sources of counselling but the party supremo, one of the senior most politicians in the country, seems to be in no mood to pay heed to any piece of advice from others. Obviously, it is a pure one man show in the affairs of the party as well as the government.

The one-upmanship, coupled with his family domination, is causing an enormous damage to the party. Had KCR listened to the suggestion of any adviser worth his salt, he wouldn't have kicked Eatala out of the cabinet and party in the first place.

The ouster came as a rude shock when the BC leader, as the Health Minister, was engrossed in Covid-19 related relief operations with utmost sincerity amidst the abysmal facilities, limited resources and unlimited uncertainty. The decision of the Big Boss to axe Eatala at an inappropriate time remains a landmark development in the political journey of TRS.

His calculation that the land grabbing allegation would make Eatala a villain in the public eye badly backfired. In contrast, it projected the BC leader as a victim of political vendetta unleased by KCR and his family. Eatala thus started his new political journey with a highly positive note. Hurt by the way he was banished, Eatala went to public with utmost sincerity. The soft-spoken leader's description of KCR as a 'highly dictatorial leader' was well-received by the public. The sidelined fighters of the Telangana movement too strengthened his hands to vent out their frustration against KCR. Eatala's episode is a real shot in the arm for BJP and Congress.

For the first time, a powerful narrative that KCR, the one who spearheaded one of the fiercest agitations of recent times, transformed into an unbearable dictator was built up. I guess some TRS ministers and MLAs too, in their hearts of hearts, prayed for a jolt to the party so that the leadership would wake up to the ground realities.

When the CM behaves as the 'supreme boss' of the government in letter and spirit, it is very difficult for bureaucrats to perform their roles for the benefit of public. The officers are made to take orders and the one-way flow has been a matter of great concern for ministers and babus alike.

For instance, KCR has seen the highly ambitious Dalit Bandhu scheme, his brainchild, as the 'trump card' at Huzurabad elections but it boomeranged beyond any doubt. Such a grandiose scheme with very serious financial repercussions must have a detailed project report, a road map and a pilot to understand the issues involved at implementation level.

In a hurry to attract the attention of a major chunk of voters in the run up to the by-poll, the Chief Minister gave an impression to Dalits that money would be deposited in their accounts the next day. Naturally, it attracted the ire of other marginalised sections.

KCR tried in vain to placate other communities by announcing that such a scheme is in store for the poor in all sections from the venue of a plenary conducted in Hyderabad. Going by the fact that the TRS candidate failed to gain upper hand against Eatala in a village where Dalit Bandhu was formally launched, it is clear that voters didn't repose faith in the CM's rhetoric on this ambitious scheme. From the word go, a Dalit police officer-turned-politician, Dr RS Praveen Kumar raised doubts on the sincerity of the CM on this issue. It seems the 'Rythu Bandhu' too didn't come to the rescue of TRS.

We don't know the real intentions of the TRS chief in showcasing 'Telugu Talli' instead of 'Telangana Talli' at the plenary and his claim that 'hundreds and thousands' of persons from Andhra Pradesh had called him with a request to launch a party but they were widely discussed by the public during the campaigning.

That too, TRS displayed a dichotomy in dealing with BJP during the elections. The plenary went very soft against the BJP leadership at a time when the country is bleeding with the hike in petrol, diesel and gas rates at a regular interval. Local leaders, led by Harish, criticised BJP for the plight of farmers and common citizens but the supremo found it convenient to reserve his comments on the issues of public interest.

Blessed with the gift of the gab, he happily showered sops for all sections while hitting out at the Election Commission. Neither the president nor the working president of TRS took part in campaign in Huzurabad in a strategic move. Both of them knew the power of Eatala in his own turf and the opposition exposed the duo's habit of staying away from the electioneering where the results could be not in favour of the party.

The TRS leadership is grossly misunderstanding the power of communication and impact of media in the State. With the advent of social media and the BJP's mastery over all social media platforms, it is unwise to relay on the owned media. The editors and journalists of the owned media would always paint a rosy picture to please the boss and it would be very dangerous in a long run. Instead, it is desirable to give free hand to media to get reliable feedback to set things right. Media management methods are proved to be costly for the pink party.

All said and done, I don't subscribe to the Telangana Congress Committee president A Revanth Reddy's prediction that TRS is in for a split following the adverse results at Huzurabad.

Though it is evident that Harish is thoroughly cornered and now his poll management capabilities are dissected, the split may not take place immediately. The TRS intra party developments in fact have a clear resemblance of Shiv Sena politics in the neighbouring Maharashtra.

Harish is playing Raj Thackeray and akin to the Bal Thackeray, the TRS supremo is making his intentions very clear to announce his son KTR as the heir-apparent. It remains to be seen whether Harish, like Raj, would part ways to launch his own party or join hands with BJP to make realise his ultimate dream.

The TRS supremo always takes by-poll route to assess the people's mood on certain issues. During the movement days, he revisited his strategies with more vigour after registering stunning victories in by-polls. The latest result is not going to severely harm the government but it should be seen as a wakeup call. It is the time to wake up and go for a correction course to retain power for the third time in a row.

(The author, a PhD in Communication and Journalism, is a senior journalist, journalism educator and communication consultant)

(The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of The Hans India)