BHUBANESWAR: Bharat Rashtra Samithi’s defeat in Telangana could mean ‘end of the road’ for the party’s ambitious plan of making its debut in the 2024 elections in Odisha, according to some prominent leaders from the state who had recently severed ties with the party.
Some known leaders, including former chief minister Giridhar Gamang along with his wife former MP Hema Gamang, their son Shishir, former MP Jayram Pangi and farmer leader Akshay Kumar have already deserted the party. Most BRS entrants from Odisha were flown to Hyderabad in choppers in January this year and had joined there in the presence of K Chandrasekhar Rao.
"BRS is leaderless and faceless in Odisha now. It’s over for them here,” Giridhar Gamang’s son Shishir told TOI. Former chief minister Giridhar along with his wife and former MP Hema, son Shishir, former MP Jayram Pangi and farmer leader Akshay Kumar have quit the party. Shishir said after the initial enthusiasm, everything has gone downhill.
"The party had planned to field candidates in assembly and Lok Sabha in Odisha in 2024. However, most of the leaders who joined the BRS from Odisha demanded top posts, funds and dreamt of becoming the chief minister. Due to the attitude of some leaders, KCR (K Chandrasekhar Rao) did not show much interest in expanding the party’s footprint in Odisha. Office-bearers could not be selected. We lost interest and quit,” said Shishir, who has already announced plan to join the Congress along with his parents.
Jayaram, a tribal leader and former MP who joined the Congress on Saturday, severed his ties with the BRS a few months back.
While both Pangi and former chief minister Giridhar Gamang are noted tribal leaders, BRS had planned to reach out a sizable Telugu-speaking population in Koraput, Rayagada, Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Ganjam and Gajapati in the state. “We do not see any strategy for Odisha now after the Telangana defeat. Had KCR won the Telangana elections, he would have thought of making inroads in Odisha,” said Kailash Mukhi, another former BRS leader.
