HYDERABAD: After After steadfastly staying away from
social media
even when he was chief minister,
BRS
president K Chandrasekhar Rao - who has often been criticised as being inaccessible - made his X debut on Saturday and amassed 27,000 followers within a day.
In his new avatar after losing his bid for a third term as
Telangana chief minister
,
KCR
is now on an outreach blitzkrieg.
He has embarked on a
bus yatra
, given lengthy TV interview, and launched his official X handle.
The change in approach, some analysts say, is crucial for his
political relevance
. Opponents have often targetted him for being "unavailable" to people, even his MLAs, a charge which is also being cited as a reason for his electoral defeat. In contrast, other Telangana leaders such as KT Rama Rao, A Revanth Reddy, Raja Singh, Kishan Reddy, K Kavitha and Bandi Sanjay have garnered significant following on social media platforms.
Not only its party chief, BRS is also focusing on revitalising its own social media presence, along with that of its other leaders. BRS Social Media convenor Manne Krishank told TOI: "As Telangana's first chief minister, KCR conducted numerous press conferences for hours, even during Covid, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi shied away from such meets. His focus on governance, development, and welfare as chief minister remains commendable, and as an
opposition leader
, he needs to connect more with the people... During the last assembly polls, KCR attended 100 public meetings."
Krishank said, "KCR has been on Facebook for several years, but we've also been advocating his presence on platforms such as Instagram. X, formerly Twitter offers more impact due to presence of politicians, government, and media."
Political strategist Errabelli Rajinikanth said: "KCR must go all out for his political survival. The upcoming parliamentary elections are crucial for his party. These outreach programmes, both online and offline, are part of an effort to salvage the party."
English (US) ·