The stage is set for a bitter confrontation between friends-turned-political foes Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhara Rao (KCR) and his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu.

The issue is the cash-for-vote scam, wherein TDP legislator from Telanagana A Revanth Reddy was reportedly caught offering a bribe to nominated legislator Elvis Stephenson. Naidu was dragged into the controversy when a recording of his purported telephonic conversation — in the possession of the Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) — was aired by TV channels. If KCR and his police top brass claim to have enough incriminating evidence to nail Naidu and other TDP leaders, Naidu and his aides counter that they have proof that the TS government has been tapping their phones in Hyderabad, the joint capital of the two States for nine more years.

A fortnight after the scam broke out, the political relations between the two States — never rosy to begin with — have plumbed new depths. Telangana’s ruling party TRS believes the TDP is looking to destabilise it. The TDP, on the other hand, is convinced the TRS is gunning to totally marginalise it in Telangana through horse-trading.

For the record, the TRS swept to power with 63 seats in the 119-member Telangana Assembly last year. Over the past year, through its ‘Akarshan’ project, the party’s ranks have swelled to 83, at the cost of the TDP and Congress. The beleaguered YSR Congress, led by YS Jaganmohan Reddy, has grabbed the opportunity to embarrass Naidu in AP. It was the first to rush with the issue to the President and Union Home Ministry. The Congress, which has just over a dozen MLAs in Telangana and none in AP, is trying to get its act together.

A visibly rattled Naidu finds himself increasingly pushed to a corner. He has raised the decibel levels of counter charge by taking the battle against KCR to Delhi.

To refresh a bit of political history, KCR, who was one of the first to join the TDP floated by former AP Chief Minister NT Rama Rao way back in 1983, served as Deputy Speaker of the Assembly for a short period when Naidu was CM during 1995-2004.

Denied a cabinet berth for his role in building the party and formulating innovative schemes, KCR quit the party and floated the TRS. The relations between KCR and Naidu worsened over the Telangana bifurcation issue.

Fire fighting

The AP government, which completed one year in office on June 8 and did bhumi puja for its new capital, Amaravathi, on June 6, is now fully caught up in fire-fighting. Efforts are on to get crucial information on phone tapping by the Telangana government. TDP members have also filed many cases against KCR in AP.

AP Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu warned of serious repercussions for the actions of the Telangana government.

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