Kavitha’s suspension, what next; Telugu politics has a long history of family feuds spilling into party affair; the BRS saga adds yet another chapter to Telugu politics where family, ambition, and betrayal often determine the fate of parties as much as ideology
The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), once seen as a tightly knit family enterprise under former Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), is now unraveling in public. On Tuesday, K Kavitha—KCR’s daughter and a former MP—was suspended from the party founded by her father.
The disciplinary action followed her explosive allegations that her cousin, senior BRS leader and former minister T Harish Rao, orchestrated the federal investigation into KCR’s finances and dealings. Kavitha did not stop there—she also accused her own brother, K T Rama Rao (KTR), widely regarded as KCR’s political heir, conspired against her.
“If this is the cost of speaking the truth, then I am ready to pay it a hundred times again for the people of Telangana,” Kavitha declared on ‘X’ on Wednesday, hours after her suspension. She also warned her father and brother of people around them.
Party leaders T Ravinder Rao and Soma Bharat Kumar justified the move, saying her recent comments amounted to “anti-party activity.” But behind the official line lies a deeper churn—the BRS is in the throes of an internal power struggle with KCR’s children and nephew jockeying for control over the party’s future, its assets, and its influence.
The KCR dynasty at crossroads
During KCR’s decade-long tenure as Chief Minister, the family operated as a political powerhouse. KTR and Harish Rao held key ministerial portfolios, while Kavitha served in Parliament and simultaneously led Telangana Jagruthi— her socio-cultural platform. The arrangement appeared balanced—until now.
The suspension signals that the once-cohesive dynasty is showing the familiar cracks that have plagued other Telugu political families. Analysts note that such rifts often begin with questions of succession and control, only to escalate into open warfare.
Not the first Telugu family drama
Telugu politics has a long history of family feuds spilling into party affair; the BRS saga adds yet another chapter to the enduring story of Telugu politics—where family, ambition, and betrayal often determine the fate of parties as much as ideology
The YSR family, for instance, saw YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and his sister YS Sharmila parting ways. Sharmila, who once campaigned for Jagan during his imprisonment, now heads the Andhra Pradesh Congress and has accused her brother of “murderous politics.”
The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) too was torn apart in the 1990s, when current Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu staged what is still remembered as a “palace coup,” ousting his father-in-law—party founder NT Rama Rao. The coup was fueled partly by resentment over the growing political influence of NTR’s second wife, Lakshmi Parvathi.
Personal rivalries, inheritances and political ambition can destabilise family-oriented parties .
What next for Kavitha?
With her suspension, Kavitha’s next steps will be closely watched. She continues to head Telangana Jagruthi, which may provide her a base independent of the BRS. Whether she uses it to build a parallel political career or to negotiate her way back into the family fold remains uncertain.
For KCR, the challenge is equally steep: keeping the BRS intact as it battles not just a resurgent Congress in Telangana but also its own imploding power center. The suspension of his daughter may consolidate KTR’s control, but it risks alienating Kavitha’s supporters and deepening perceptions of a dynasty at war with itself.
