The Dalit MLAs from the TRS are facing a strange dilemma. The dilemma is – whether to obey the party leadership’s diktat or to protect their Dalit vote bank? This dilemma is making several Dalit MLAs to go silent on the issue of former IPS officer RS Praveen Kumar. When KTR wanted them to counter RS Praveen Kumar’s comment that he would storm into the Pragathi Bhavan riding an ‘elephant,’ many Dalit MLAs avoided speaking.
Normally, TRS leaders will be head over heels when KTR asks them to do something. But, when it came to criticizing Praveen Kumar, they gave excuses galore to avoid speaking. One MLA said he was out of Hyderabad, while the other said he was having a slight fever. Finally, it was left to Tungaturti MLA Gadari Kishore to take on Praveen Kumar. Soon after criticizing Praveen Kumar, he was flooded with comments on social media.
The Dalit MLAs are already worried by the division within the two prominent SC communities and some MLAs have owned up Praveen Kumar as their own. So, they do not want to be seen as opposing Praveen Kumar and lose out the votes of their own community. Many felt that criticizing the man from their own community would be counter-productive. While leaders like Koppula Eswar are busy in Huzurabad bypolls, the other tried to stay away from the controversy.
These Dalit leaders feel that Praveen Kumar has the support of one strong sub-community and by criticizing him, they would risk losing the backing of this community. They feel that they can take on Praveen Kumar only after sometime. Sources say this defiance was entirely unexpected for the TRS top boss.
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