GHMC mayor poll: TRS, AIMIM back to being ‘friendly’ parties?

Hyderabad: What was supposed to be a tight contest ended in a very anti-climatic way, with the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) easily walking away with the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation’s (GHMC) mayor and deputy mayor posts on Thursday.
The surprise came from the All India Majilis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), which did not put up a candidate, and instead quietly gave support to the TRS’s candidates. In fact, in a tweet, AIMIM chief and member of Parliament from the Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat Asaduddin Owaisi also thanks the TRS for “offering” the deputy mayor’s post.
Though it is not completely out of tune that such an offer was made. It was a little surprising given the fact that TRS working president and state IT minister K. T. Rama Rao (KTR) had in fact denied being in any kind of alliance or even on friendly terms with the AIMIM before the GHMC polls that were held last year.
Until KTR’s comments during the GHMC polls, TRS leaders mostly in public maintained that their party was always on “friendly” terms with the AIMIM. That seemingly changed to acrimony during the elections, so speculations were rife as to whether the AIMIM would actually provide support since it would allow the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to target both parties.
“They (TRS) extended a hand of friendship, so he (Asad) responded. It was a friendly gesture. TRS did not succumb to the BJP. They have to say whatever is needed (during . If we say KCR is very nice, then our voters will ask why they should vote for us,” remarked a senior AIMIM leader, when asked about the latest development with the TRS.
Political analyst Palwai Raghavendra Reddy said that in spite of KTR’s comments, AIMIM never officially said anything against KCR or the TRS. “AIMIM would have thought that KTR’s comments were political compulsions. In fact even the IT minister has not said anything now,” Reddy pointed out.