TRS storms to power in Telangana, TDP in Seemandhra (Intro Roundup)

Hyderabad, May 16 (IANS) The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) Friday made history by securing clear majorities to form governments in the newly-created states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh respectively, crushing the Congress. They also bagged majority of the Lok Sabha seats in the two Telugu-speaking states.

In the first election held after bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, the TRS won 63 seats in 119-member assembly. It will form the first government in Telangana, which is set to become India's 29th state on June 2.

TRS legislators will meet in Hyderabad Saturday to elect K. Chandrasekhara Rao as their leader.

Seemandhra, which will come into being as Andhra Pradesh the same day, will see the TDP government led by N. Chandrababu Naidu. He will have the distinction of serving as the chief minister of both undivided Andhra Pradesh and the residuary state.

Riding on Telangana sentiment and with the agenda of rebuilding the new state, the TRS stormed to power by getting a simple majority.

The Congress, which failed to gain electorally despite carving out the separate state, finished a poor second with 20 seats and was ahead in one segment.

The TDP-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance in Telangana secured 20 seats. The BJP won only five out of 48 seats it contested in the state. The TDP put up a good show by clinching 15 seats.

The Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) retained its seven assembly seats in Hyderabad. Others including Independents bagged eight seats.

The TRS, which contested the polls on its own after refusing to merge or even have an alliance with the Congress, captured 11 out of 17 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana. The Congress won two, the BJP, the TDP, the MIM and the YSR Congress Party secured one seat each.

TRS chief Chandrasekhara Rao won both from Medak Lok Sabha and Gajwel assembly seats. His daughter K.Kavitha won the Nizamabad parliamentary seat. Rao's son K. Taraka Rama Rao and nephew Harish Rao retained their assembly seats. TDP's senior leader E. Rajender was also elected to the assembly.

Congress' Telangana chief Ponnala Lakshmaiah, former deputy chief minister Damodar Rajanarasimha and Rajya Sabha member V. Hanumantha Rao were among the heavyweights who lost the assembly elections.

All three central ministers from Telangana including cabinet minister S. Jaipal Reddy were defeated in the Lok Sabha polls.

If the results were shocking for the Congress in Telangana, it was a complete humiliation for the party in Seemandhra.

In the worst-ever performance in the southern state, the party failed to win even a single assembly or Lok Sabha seat. Such was the people's ire over the state's bifurcation that all its top leaders including five central ministers had to bite the dust.

By winning 102 seats so far in 175-member assembly, the TDP secured the majority on its own. Its ally BJP won four seats.

The YSR Congress, which was locked in close fight in many districts, finished second with 67 seats.

Chandrababu Naidu retained his Kuppam assembly seat in Chittoor district.

Naidu, the longest-serving chief minister of the undivided state, termed the outcome as "people's victory" and promised to develop Seemandhra like Singapore.

YSR Congress chief Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy, who was elected from Pulivendula assembly constituency, attributed TDP's win to Modi factor and the 'false promises' by Naidu.

The TDP-BJP alliance also won 18 out of 25 Lok Sabha seats in Seemandhra. The YSRCP bagged eight seats.