The Congress party is most likely to enter into an electoral understanding with the Telangana Jana Samithi, a newly formed political party of former Telangana Joint Action Committee chairman Prof M Kodandaram.
According to highly placed sources, the Congress party leadership is closely watching the moves of Kodandaram and analysing its mass base.
A senior party leader said though Kodandaram has a tremendous mass appeal, especially among the youth, unemployed and the leftist sections in the rural areas, he does not have enough manpower and financial strength to convert this support into votes.
So, the Congress leadership is of the view that Kodandaram had no option but to have an alliance with the Congress party.
However, the party feels if there is an alliance with the TJS, Kodandaram might start bargaining asking for at least 40 assembly seats and a half-a-dozen MP seats.
“Finally, he might settle for at least 20 MLA seats and two MP seats,” the leader said.
However, the Congress is not ready to give not more than four or five MLA seats and one MP seat to Kodandaram’s party.
“He has no option but to agree for whatever we give because he has no strength to fight it alone. He can’t even find suitable candidates,” he said.
One doubts whether Kodandaram would agree for such a cheap bargain. He is confident of making inroads into the TRS bastion and majority of the disgruntled elements would come into his party.
“He is not a man in hurry. He is a silent operator. The Congress will understand his power just before the elections,” a TJS source said.
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