Presidential poll: Yashwant Sinha and KCR to meet after TRS promises support

NEW DELHI: Former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha on Wednesday said he will visit Telangana on July 18 as part of his campaign, days after the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) extended its support to the presidential candidate's candidature as the Opposition nominee. Sinha will meet Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR). The visit is significant in the context of KCR's attempt to make a foray into national politics.

Although the TRS has always kept an equal distance from the BJP and the Congress, the party on various occasions has sided with the Modi government. In the 2017 presidential election, he supported the NDA.

Ahead of the 2023 assembly elections, the TRS sees the BJP as its main rival as the latter expands its footprint in the state.

This justifies the party's support for Sinha. According to party sources who spoke to the New Indian Express, Sinha's visit to the state is seen as a sign of a thaw between the TRS and other opposition parties.

An opposition leader, who did not wish to be named, told the newspaper that the TRS had no choice but to support the opposition candidate as the BJP has gained a foothold in the state.