TDP loyalists get red-carpet treatment; even BJP whispers open doors. 

Big contracts? Andhra Pradesh contractors waltz in, their Telangana rivals left to twiddle thumbs. "Telangana's treasury is Andhra's playground," grumbles a sidelined local builder.

metro india news  I hyderabad

In the corridors of power in Telangana, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy reigns supreme, but the whispers tell a tale of isolation fit for a tragic Telugu blockbuster. Surrounded by a coterie of "chamchas" – those ever-smiling yes-men who polish his ego brighter than a Diwali lamp – Revanth is said to be drifting in a bubble of praise, blind to the brewing storm outside. Officers tremble at the thought of plum postings slipping away, so they shower accolades like confetti. Advisors? They're ghosts on paper, their counsel as sought-after as yesterday's stale meal. And the media? Muzzled by the fear of lost favors, they pen odes to the CM's vision while Telangana's public murmurs grow louder, funneled through the unfiltered lens of Metro India’s gritty dispatches.

Sources close to the Secretariat – those rare souls who dare to speak off-record – paint a picture of a government adrift. Congress did score brownie points early on with ration cards, sanna rice distributions, free transport for women, and uninterrupted free power. These small mercies won hearts in the dusty villages and bustling bazaars. But, the failures! The farmer's loan waiver, that election-eve siren song, remains a mirage. Rythu Bandhu payments drag like a bullock cart in mud, and the vaunted "guarantees" – from job pledges to irrigation dreams – have evaporated faster than monsoon puddles.

The urea shortage? It's not just a supply hiccup; it's a full-blown scandal. Corruption in distribution has farmers fuming, their kharif crops withering while black-market barons rake in crores. And don't get us started on the sanna rice procurement fiasco – the government's refusal to buy at full scale has left paddy fields orphaned, farmers' pockets empty, and resentment fermenting like toddy. Payments to employees and students? Delayed so chronically that even the Group of Ministers' solemn vows ring hollow. "We want to talk to the CM himself," the rank-and-file chant, a damning indictment of a "big system failure." Colleges are up in arms, students blocking roads with placards that scream neglect. The youth, once Revanth's fervent foot soldiers, now eye him with the skepticism of jilted lovers.

Revanth's own words are fueling the confusion. One day, he's vowing to helm Telangana for the next decade; the next, he's floating the idea of a Backward Class (BC) successor – himself, of course, being the ultimate BC icon. "Is he staying or going? Make up your mind, Anna!" quip the chaiwallahs in Secunderabad. This flip-flopping has the public scratching heads, while inside the party, it's pure pandemonium. In a move that's shocked even hardened Congress veterans, Revanth has commandeered all key appointments – IAS, IPS, district collectors – bypassing senior ministers like they're extras in his personal drama. "It's not Congress; it's Revanth Rajyam," snipes one irate cabinet heavyweight. Ministers, reduced to dummies, seethe in silence. Their unhappiness is palpable; morale is lower than the Godavari in summer.

The bureaucracy is a circus of crossed wires. IAS and IPS officers huddle in confusion: obey the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) edicts or the ministers' pleas? "CMO first, always," is the unspoken rule, leaving ministers' recommendations gathering dust. Officers dodge supplicants with diplomatic finesse – "Sorry, unavailable today" – a phrase that's become the Secretariat's favorite lullaby. And the graft? It's rampant, a hydra with heads in every department. Two to three lakh rupees per double-bedroom allotment? Standard operating procedure in the districts. Land conversions, revenue releases, contract awards – all greased by envelopes fatter than a politician's expense account. Preferred references? TDP loyalists get red-carpet treatment; even BJP whispers open doors. Big contracts? Andhra contractors waltz in, their Telangana rivals left to twiddle thumbs. "Telangana's treasury is Andhra's playground," grumbles a sidelined local builder.

Revanth, ever the strategist, is playing a sly game with the opposition. Insiders whisper he's quietly egging on K. Kavitha – yes, the firebrand BRS rebel daughter – to keep chipping away at her father's party. It's weakening BRS from within, but the boomerang is real. Public sympathy swells for the pink party; folks loathe her patricidal barbs, even if they're laced with truth. KTR and Harish Rao, those BRS warhorses, are burying hatchets, united by the Kavitha chill. Meanwhile, Revanth's building his fortress: a personal posse of loyalist politicians, business tycoons, and cronies snapping up deals. 

The revolt simmers. At least ten Congress MLAs are in full mutiny mode, plotting in hushed huddles. Telangana's coffers are bleeding to fund Congress's national war chest – bankrolling other states' elections while local schemes starve for cash. Of the five main CM contenders eyeing Revanth's throne, one's already folded, performing pujas for the incumbent's longevity. Another's drowning in corruption muck. Only three lions remain, their stature shrinking by the day as Revanth maneuvers. BJP? Still a distant third, but don't count them out – expect sixers in the final over, perhaps a post-poll tango with BRS.

Come Jubilee Hills by poll, the glitterati's playground, it's shaping up as Telangana's costliest electoral bloodbath: Rs 300 crore war chest across parties. Muslims divided by BRS's savvy plays; Congress neck-and-neck, edged out by sympathy votes, plummeting real estate prices, and their candidate's rowdy rep. Internal Congress feuds? Ministers are rooting for a loss – "Let the high command clean house." Indeed, the high command's losing faith in Revanth, dispatching envoys to woo district satraps directly. Funds are so tight, flagship schemes limp along, breeding unhappiness.

In this gossip-fueled haze, a grim consensus emerges: Congress won't snag a second term. Leaders and reps, sensing the axe, are in "make hay while the sun shines" frenzy – stuffing pockets with whatever glitters. "Telangana's salvation?" the whispers conclude. Only a BRS-BJP combo can deliver the development drought has parched. As Revanth's bubble threatens to burst, Hyderabad's salons buzz with one question: When the flattery fades, what fortress remains?