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| Naidu, first citizen of Hyderabad? |
| Monday July 20, 2009 |
| Last week, my aunt who now stays in Coimbatore had come visiting. Seetha Maami is extremely cued into political news, and having lived in Visakhapatnam and Hyderabad for the better part of her life, Andhra politics has a special place in her heart. "Poor Chandrababu did not manage it even this time," she rued. Knowing her liking for Naidu, I teased, "Why do you call him 'poor'?" "He did so much for Hyderabad, didn't he?" she asked, quick to Naidu's defence. "But despite that, his Telugu Desam did not win a single assembly seat in Hyderabad this time," I argued. The electoral verdict and the so-called popular opinion on Naidu, in both 2004 and 2009, have been dramatically different from each other. There are many like Seetha Maami who fondly remember Naidu for the aggressive manner in which he put Hyderabad on the world map, made it a clean and green city, introduced Hyderabad to flyovers, thought of a modern international airport, logged on to the IT industry and created Cyberabad, wooed Bill Gates and Bill Clinton to the city, constructed world-class stadia and brought in the Afro-Asian Games. In short, Nizam's Hyderabad was history. It became Naidu's Hyderabad. Yet, when it came to the EVMs, Naidu won just two assembly seats in the city in 2004 and lost those as well in 2009. Yes, that has a lot to do with voter apathy in a city like Hyderabad and also because Naidu's TDP, this time round, lost a lot of precious votes to other smaller parties, which played effective spoilers. Like the Loksatta, the Praja Rajyam, the BJP, the TRS, all of which chipped away at votes that Naidu believes would have otherwise come to him. So where does Naidu go from here? He does lead a 92-member TDP in the Andhra Pradesh assembly where he also has the difficult task of keeping his flock together and more importantly, motivated in the next five years. The Congress is at its naughty best, wooing disgruntled leaders and spreading canards about others, who are not willing to jump ship. So do Hyderabadis allow Naidu to sit idle and do nothing for them? Shouldn't Hyderabad in some way gain from Naidu's acumen as an able administrator? Most political pundits agree he was a good chief minister but is a pathetic Leader of the opposition. Because he is so bitter, so full of anger and vitriol at his friend-turned-foe Rajasekhara Reddy sitting on what he thought was his chair till 2020, if not for keeps. That he has to wait till 2014 to have a go at it, must be frustrating Naidu no end. Most Hyderabadis would agree that civic conditions in the Congress regime have been pathetic. What used to be beautiful, well-lit roads now are dark, potential graveyards for motorists. And the monsoon is not even here. Last year, streets in several colonies were slushy cesspools for weeks at end till the Sun God dried up the water. One thought, the Congress government would do better in an election year. But nothing changed. And I suspect, the victory in elections 2009 despite not delivering on even basic civic amenities would only make the Congress leaders more complacent. The Congress leadership is already gung-ho expecting to sweep the elections to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation. These corporators who we would elect, would be responsible for the kind of conditions we live in, with what kind of amenities. If the Congress indeed sweeps the municipal polls, there will be many who will shudder at the thought of being at the mercy of the same party, drunk on the opium of absolute power till 2014. And since Naidu is not a good Opposition leader, why doesn't his party nominate him to be the Mayor of Hyderabad, if his TDP gets a majority? I admit, it would be a demotion for the man who aspired to be the CM again, and who was even offered the top job in the country, twice in the nineties. But then, wouldn't this keep him busy, besides giving him a great opportunity to remind Hyderabadis of the Naidu of old? The man with the development agenda. Protocol would also ensure Naidu is always at hand in the Mayor's black-and-golden robe, whenever any dignitary comes visiting. That would keep him in the limelight, instead of it seeming like he is sulking at the TDP headquarters in Hyderabad, presiding over endless meetings. The job could present him with a golden chance to lay out his vision for the city and implement it and hope the goodwill converts into votes in 2014. Give it a thought, Naidu gaaru. As Shahrukh Khan said in 'Baazigar' ... "Kabhi kabhi kuch jitney ke liye kucch haarna padta hai aur haar kar jitney waale ko Baazigar kehte hai" ("Sometimes to win, you need to lose something and the one to win after losing, is the ultimate magician"). |
T S Sudhir is Resident Editor (South) and has been with NDTV since February 1995. He has reported extensively on politics, Naxalism, business, sports, entertainment and is one of the seniormost television journalists in the country today.
