Have support of 120 MPs, will start national party after polls if needed: KCR

Telangana Chief Minister and Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) President K Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday launched his party's election campaign with a call for 'Congress and BJP mukt Bharat'. Addressing an election rally in Karimnagar, he blamed the two national parties for all the ills plaguing the country and underlined the need for an alternative to bring qualitative change in the national politics.

Reiterating that he was entering national politics, KCR appealed to people to bless him. KCR said that a government which works with true federal spirit was required at the Centre to solve the country's problems.

Referring to the remarks by his critics as to what TRS would do at Centre with 16 MPs, KCR said that 120 MPs would be with him. He claimed that not all parties were ready to go with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress.

“People think I have just 16 MPs with me. Obviously I will not make my plans public. But, I can tell you, I have about 120 leaders on my side who are supporting me. I have travelled and met other regional leaders and I told them exactly what I had to,” KCR was quoted as saying.

KCR added that he was willing to launch a national party after the Lok Sabha polls, if the need arose.

"After elections, you will see what we are capable of doing," said KCR, who last year floated the idea of a Federal Front; a consortium of regional parties opposed to both Congress and BJP.

The TRS chief appealed to people to elect 16 candidates of TRS and his ally All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) President Asaduddin Owaisi in Hyderabad.

KCR targeted both the national parties. "BJP leaders say they are the only Hindus. Then what is their problem if Hindus perform puja," he asked in an apparent reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticising him during Assembly elections for performing 'puja' and conducting religious rituals.

“Are you the only ones who can safeguard our culture? Were there no temples before the BJP came?” he asked.

At the meeting, the TRS also re-nominated sitting Karimnagar MP B Vinod Kumar, with KCR saying that if their plans of a Federal Front succeed, he would be a union minister.

Lok Sabha elections in Telangana are scheduled in a single phase on April 11.

IANS inputs