Publicity plays a crucial role in elections but it requires hundreds of crores of rupees for any political party to take it up in a big way.
Flooding newspapers, TV channels and social media with party advertisements and paid articles; not all parties have the financial clout to implement this in an effective way.
Ironically, the Congress Party which has ruled Andhra Pradesh for several decades is not in a position to compete with TRS as it has no party-owned newspapers or TV channels loyal to it unlike the TRS, TDP and YSRCP.
But Congress, all of a sudden, has risen to a position where it is posing a serious challenge to the might of the ruling TRS.
All the newspapers and TV channels are flooded with Congress-led Mahakutami advertisements leaving the TRS shell shocked.
The question on everyone’s lips is: Where did Congress get the financial strength to afford this publicity blitzkrieg considering that apparently, its not the High Command which is shelling out the money? The answer is: Chandrababu Naidu!
It is reliably learnt that Naidu has kept aside a Rs 300- crore package for 'media management' and publicity to beat TRS.
He is believed to have deputed Andhra leader TD Janardhan to deal with publicity and media management and ensure positive coverage for Mahakutami in all elections.
In the GHMC elections in 2016, it was the TRS that stole the thunder from other parties but this time, the Congress has overshadowed TRS thanks to Naidu, who is going all out to ensure that TRS is defeated at any cost and that his arch rival KCR is unseated as CM of Telangana by the time Naidu goes for Assembly polls in AP in April 2019.
