The Grand Alliance of opposition parties to thwart the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) appears to be turning into an abstract concept.
Firebrand Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader KT Rama Rao, popularly known as KTR, fired shots at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after he mocked Telangana CM KCR for aspiring to be a national leader.
A minister in the state cabinet and son of the CM KCR, KTR tweeted, “International leader Rahul Gandhi, who can’t even win his own parliament seat in Amethi, ridicules Telangana CM KCR Ji’s national party ambitions.”
In 2019, Rahul Gandhi lost his Amethi seat to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Smriti Irani. Incidentally, Amethi was considered the Gandhi family’s citadel.
Taking his attack on Rahul Gandhi further, KTR said the latter is a ‘wannabe’. “A wannabe PM should first convince his people to elect him as an MP,” KTR added.
International leader Rahul Gandhi who can’t even win his own parliament seat in Amethi ridicules Telangana CM KCR Ji’s national party ambitions 🤦♂️
Wannabe PM should first convince his people to elect him as an MP
— KTR (@KTRBRS) November 1, 2022
The statement came after Rahul Gandhi took a jibe at Telangana CM KCR while ruling out any possibility of an alliance with his party, TRS.
Addressing the media during the Telangana leg of the Bharat Jodo Yatra, Rahul said: “If the Telangana CM believes he is running a national party, he’s welcome to think that. If he thinks he is running an international party, he’s also welcome to imagine that.”
It is pertinent to note that Telangana CM KCR, coveting a national role ahead of the 2024 election, founded the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), a new national version of his party, on the eve of Vijayadashami.
Terming Telangana CM KCR as a dictator, Rahul also said that TRS cannot hold internal elections like Congress did when it elected Mallikarjun Khadge as the new Congress President.
The duel between Rahul Gandhi and TRS could throw the opposition Grand Alliance into jeopardy as major opposition parties fail to come together to put up a combined force against the formidable run of Prime minister Narendra Modi ahead of the 2024 elections.