One Nation-One Election Stumps BRS Leadership

Hyderabad: The idea of implementing 'one nation-one election' taking the centre-stage in Indian politics has become a matter of concern for Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).

Its leaders believe that even if it takes more time for the 'one nation-one election' Bill to come into force, the Telangana Assembly polls, which are scheduled for December, may be postponed to facilitate holding them along with Lok Sabha polls in April-May 2024.

Party’s former MP B. Vinod Kumar demanded that the BJP government at the Centre clarify why it had suddenly decided to convene a special session of Parliament.

"The BJP should immediately clarify and remove confusion on the one nation-one election. It is trying to create confusion among political parties and the people" Kumar said.

TPCC vice-president Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi opted for the one nation-one election gambit after the BJP lost the Karnataka Assembly elections as he wished to delay elections in five states scheduled for December.

The Jana Sena extended complete support to 'one nation-one election'. Jana Sena political affairs committee chairman Nadendla Manohar said that BJP leaders have discussed this issue with party chief Pawan Kalyan.

Anticipating that Assembly elections would be held in December, the BRS has declared names of party candidates, some of whom have even started campaigning. They are worried about mounting expenditure if elections are postponed to April.

Some BRS candidates in their internal discussions say they were incurring around 'three lakh expenditure per day after the party announced their candidature on August 21.

Telangana Assembly polls used to be held along with Lok Sabha polls until 2014. But Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao dissolved the House in September 2018, forcing elections three months later, against the originally scheduled April/ May 2019.