People familiar of the matter has said that the Telangana chief minister will announce the new name for his Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) party on Dussehra.
A 10-point guide to this big story
1) The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) will be renamed as 'Bharata Rashtra Samiti' (BRS) and the state government's welfare schemes would be showcased across the country to help it emerge as a national force, ruling party sources told PTI.
2) A TRS leader Sreedhar Reddy said, "The people of the Nation are looking for a strong national platform as NDA failed in all aspects of governance".
3) The rechristening exercise and the plan to reach out to people by pitching its "Telangana good governance model" is part of party's efforts to foray into national politics and effectively take on the BJP.
4) “The Chief Minister reiterated that, as announced earlier, the party general meeting will be held at 11 AM on October 5 in Telangana Bhavan. Leaders are requested to attend the meeting within the specified time," an official release from K Chandrashekar Rao's office said.
5) KCR spoke about the national platforms and going to the national level. He said that the Gujarat model failed utterly and the country is looking for a strong alternative.
6) To get a national party status, KCR's TRS will need at least 6 per cent of valid votes in over four states in Lok Sabha and assembly elections.
7) The chief minister has also shifted his focus on fighting polls in other states like Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
8) In its outreach initiative, the party would focus on welfare schemes being implemented in Telangana like 'Rythu Bandhu' support scheme for farmers and 'Dalit Bandhu' ( ₹10 lakh grant to every Dalit household to start any business or trade).
9) The name change would be conveyed to the Election Commission through e-mail and later in person on October 6, the sources said.
10) The TRS, in its foundation day event in April this year, had resolved that the party should play a key role in national politics in the interest of the country as the BJP was "exploiting communal sentiments," for its political convenience.
(With PTI inputs)
