KTR Facebook Record In Telangana

Anvesh Reddy

Nine months after standing out as the first politician to reach one million followers on Twitter, Telangana caretaker minister for Industry, Municipal Administration, ITE&C, Mines, Handlooms & Textiles and NRI Affairs, K Taraka Rama Rao aka KTR is on the verge of reaching yet another personal milestone on Facebook.

In February this year, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader reached the ten lakh mark on Twitter. KTR, who has 1.45 million followers on Twitter, continues to dominate social media with his active presence.

Meanwhile, the popular leader is up for another such achievement, this time on Facebook. With 913,916 likes on his Facebook page, KTR is also the most liked politician on Facebook page. Inching towards the 1 million mark on the election eve makes it even more exciting for followers of the IT minister. Thanks to his prompt responses and resolutions for individual complaints and grievances through tweets, the MLA from Sircilla has garnered a massive following over the last few years.

Interestingly, TRS MP from Nizamabad K Kavitha is the second most followed Telangana leader followed by caretaker Chief Minister K Chandrashkhar Rao (KCR)--both on Twitter and Facebook. While Kavitha has over seven lakh followers and likes on the two social media sites, KCR, although confined to official announcements in his capacity as Chief Minister, also enjoys a following of nearly seven lakh likes on Facebook.

The Congress leaders from Telangana, on the other side, are way behind on social media by the Kalvakuntla clan. Irrespective of whether the TRS domination in the digital space boosts the party's chances in the December 7 Assembly polls, the popularity of Telangana Congress working president Revanth Reddy across the State should not be ignored in the current circumstances.

TPCC President Uttam Kumar Reddy, with 520,865 likes on Facebook, is not even at a kissing distance from that of his TRS counterpart. Ever since Revanth Reddy shot to popularity in recent years, his hard-hitting speeches have found space on YouTube. The Kodangal MLA has close to half a million likes on Facebook.

Though KTR is the most popular leader on the social networking sites, the ground reality is that a majority of the State's rural population does not have a presence on social media. Contrary to popular perception, the TRS MLAs face backlash in some constituencies even as KCR is busy conducting marathon public meetings to change the fortunes of the TRS and to drive its message of development home.

As per the results announced by the C Voter Survey a fortnight ago, the Congress-led coalition is expected to grab 64 seats while the ruling party is forecast to win in 42 Assembly segments. The results would be out on December 11.

Watch this space for more updates on Telangana Assembly elections 2018.

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