Just hours before the results of the Telangana election, the leaders of the Prajakutami formalised their alliance with Telangana Governor ESL Narasimhan.
“It is brought to the notice of your Excellency that the four political parties ie. Indian National Congress, Telugu Desam Party, Telangana Jana Samiti (Regd. Party) have come to an understanding of pre-poll alliance and formed ‘People’s Front’ and contested the elections held for the State of Telangana on 7th December 2018, unitedly,” a letter signed by Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee chief Uttam Kumar Reddy, Telangana Telugu Desam Party chief L Ramana, Telangana Jana Samithi chief Prof Kodandaram and CPI state secretary Chada Venkat Reddy said.
This was formalised so that in the event of a fractured mandate in the Telangana election results on Tuesday, when the Governor has to invite a party to form the government, the People’s Front must be considered as one entity. Congress party's Telangana unit President Uttam Kumar Reddy told reporters that they were formalising the alliance as a precautionary measure, and said that they had contested the polls with a common minimum programme, of which Prof Kodandaram is the head.
He went on to add that they informed Governor Narasimhan that the Supreme Court, in various instances, has observed that a pre-poll alliance should be treated as a single entity. The leaders also said that this was what the Sarkaria Commission also said. The Sarkaria Commission recommends to the Governor that in the event of a fractured mandate, the pre-poll alliance must be invited first, followed by the single largest party, then the post-poll alliance, and then the post-electoral alliance of parties, with some of the parties in the alliance forming a government and the remaining parties.
While the Mahakutami has formalised their alliance, they are yet to announce any probable Chief Ministerial faces.
Speaking to TNM, Prof Kodandaram said, “The Congress is the largest party, so the CM candidate will be decided by them.”
However, Congress leader Madhu Yaskhi differed. “This is a democratic front unlike an aristocratic front governed from a farmhouse or the CMs camp office. The CM will be chosen by the MLAs. That is the freedom given by Rahul Gandhi. In the Congress and the gathbandhan, there is a possibility for a Dalit, Christian, Reddy, Muslim, a person who is from a backward caste or woman can become chief minister. This opportunity cannot be seen in TRS or BJP,” he said.
At the same time that the leaders were meeting Narasimhan, All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi was meeting Telangana Rashtra Samithi chief K Chandrasekhar Rao, and reiterated that in the event of a hung assembly, the AIMIM would support the TRS. The BJP also earlier said that they would support the TRS if the party cuts its ‘friendly’ relationship with the AIMIM.
“KCR claims TRS will win over 100 seats. Then they should explain when they are so confident of winning why are you meeting the MIM and negotiating with BJP? It's because they are fearing a defeat,” he said.