The BJP may be focusing on the 30 November election to the Telangana Legislative Assembly, but its ideological powerhouse, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), appears to have its focus a little further in the future.
According to sources South First spoke to, the RSS has set its eyes on Lok Sabha elections next year. It expects the BJP to win in six to seven constituencies in the parliamentary polls.
Foot soldiers on-ground for BJP
But unofficially, the RSS would continue to help the BJP in the Telangana Assembly election even as its primary target would be the Lok Sabha polls. It would create the right ambiance for the saffron party to leverage and convert it to its favour.
The RSS does not expect any miracles in the Assembly elections. It is learnt that the BJP national leadership’s assessment is that the party might end up third in the electoral battle.
“We do not want to fritter away our energy on Telangana. We want to preserve and utilise it better for the Lok Sabha elections,” an RSS activist told South First on the condition of anonymity:
About one-and-a-half years ago, the RSS was interested in the BJP’s prospects in Telangana. But suddenly, the party, for various reasons, began losing steam rapidly and the RSS began losing interest in the BJP emerging as an alternative to the ruling BRS or emerging as the second-most powerful party.
After the BJP lost Karnataka, the the saffron party has slowed down, forcing the RSS to focus more on the Lok Sabha elections in the state. The RSS is strong in Telangana’s tribal belt as well as in the plains.
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