In just two weeks, Kalvakuntla Chandrasekhara Rao, popularly known as KCR, has transformed from a marginalised leader fighting for survival into Telangana?s hero. He brought the region to a halt with his 11-day deeksha?fast unto death?and forced the Centre to say yes to a separate state on Wednesday night. The next day, there were victory processions in his name in Telangana, his photos and posters were garlanded and people of the region declared he was their god.
But before November 29, KCR, 55, had his back to the wall. His party was in disarray, had lost ground in Telangana and his leadership was being questioned. The Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) president was written off by his own party members and rebels were going in for the kill. Even key advocates of the Telangana cause dismissed him as an opportunist who jumped from one party or affiliation to another.
So, when he threatened to undertake a fast unto death about a month ago he drew sneers even from his own party. He was just bluffing, they said, and no one took him seriously.
Last month, he was even afraid to contest the civic elections in Hyderabad.
Spearheading the Telangana movement since 2001, the TRS got a drubbing in its bastion in May 2009. In the Assembly elections, the people of the region made it clear that the separate state sentiment had faded?the party managed to win only 10 seats out of the 45 it contested. It was the same story in the Lok Sabha elections. KCR just about scraped through from Mahbubnagar, with former actress Vijayashanti?and one of his bete noires?being the only other TRS candidate to bag a seat.
However, KCR is known to be a survivor. After all, he jumped ship from the Congress and TDP and floated the TRS, successfully positioning himself as the champion of the 50-year-old struggle for Telangana.
The jury is still out on whether he really intended to take the fight to the finish or he got caught in a situation from which he could not wriggle out. But for the foreseeable future, he is being hailed as the architect of Telangana and thereby the region?s tallest leader.