Actor-turned-politician Pawan Kalyan pleads with BJP to formalise alliance with TDP-JSP combine in AP
Actor-turned-politician Pawan Kalyan pleads with BJP
to formalise alliance with TDP-JSP combine in AP
Actor-turned-politician and Jana Sena Party (JSP) Pawan Kalyan pleads with BJP to formalise alliance with TDP-JSP combine in Andhra Pradesh for the upcoming simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. As such efforts have caused him a lot of mental agony.
Barely 45 days to go for the polls, Kalyan’s agony may last longer as the BJP is yet to take a call on the alliance. What seems to trouble him is the JSP’s uneasy tie-up with the
N Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP, formally announced in September last year, when Naidu jailed in connection with the alleged Andhra Pradesh Skill Development Corporation scam.
The leaders of both allies have since skipped coordination committee meetings, and even resorted to fist fights. Both parties also unilaterally announced two Assembly poll candidates each.
On January 26, Kalyan alleged Naidu that he did not follow coalition dharma when the TDP chief announced candidates for the Mandapeta and Araku Assembly seats without consulting the JSP. He then also announced that his party would contest the Razole and Rajanagaram Assembly seats.
Even as both Naidu and Kalyan have called their alliance the “need of the hour in the interest of the state”, sources reveal that the seat-sharing between their parties is getting trickier, especially in the two Godavari districts – East and West.
Sources, also reveal that there are about 20 Assembly constituencies where the two parties are struggling to reach a consensus. These seats include Rajahmundry Rural, Gannavaram, Pithapuram, Kakinada Rural, Eluru and Tadepalligudem.
As per claim of JSP leaders the Godavari districts are their strongholds and compromising on these seats will not be in the party’s interests. Regardless of not winning seats in 2019, the party fared well in these areas and since then have been putting in hard work.
A JSP office-bearer from East Godavari states that to part with these seats now would be detrimental to the party’s prospects as well as that of the alliance’s.
The cadre of both parties are also wary of the delay in finalising their seats.
A TDP activist from Rajahmundry articulates that
on one hand, CM Jagan (Mohan Reddy) has released multiple lists and is moving ahead with his Siddham campaign, they are still unsure of the candidates.
Another TDP leader states that the party was not leaving room for damage control after the list of candidates is announced.
Adding that there will inevitably be problems when the candidates are announced as some leaders would be miffed. With the elections so close, the leadership will not have time to prevent them from working against them.
However, TDP national spokesperson Jyothsna Tirunagari dismissed such apprehensions.
She went on to add that in an alliance, there are bound to be minor tussles between partners, even on issues of seat-sharing.
While Jagan is only announcing in-charges just to test the waters, we are making a comprehensive list while taking into account ground-level workers’ opinion. The alliance list was to come out by February 20 but some niggling issues are causing the delay.
She further articulated while refraining from specifying the constituents of the alliance.
the candidate list and common manifesto will be out by the end of this month.
One of the key reasons being cited for the TDP and JSP’s delay in finalising their seat-sharing and candidates’ list is the “BJP’s pending decision regarding joining the alliance.
TDP insiders quote that following Naidu’s meeting with top BJP leaders in Delhi last month, the alliance has been finalised and that just its announcement is pending.
They said the TDP has offered 5-6 Lok Sabha seats (out of a total of 25 LS seats) and 40 Assembly constituencies (out of 175 Assembly seats) to the BJP-JSP combine. The BJP has sought 10 seats for the Lok Sabha polls, sources said.
Andhra fault line hits flashpoint as Pawan Kalyan, Naidu team up against Jagan over volunteer scheme.Tirunagari said “political discussions” have taken place and that there would be clarity in a few days.
Their leader Naidu had spoken to top BJP leaders and apprised them of the situation in the state. An announcement on the same will come out in the next couple of days pointing out that the JSP is already a part of the BJP-led NDA.
Currently, the BJP does not have even a single MLA or MP in the state. In the 2019 Assembly polls, the party polled only 0.9% of the votes, fewer than NOTA which got 1.5%.
Another concern that both the TDP and the JSP leaders voiced was regarding transfer of votes. They said it was unclear if their core base will vote for the alliance partners.
Meanwhile, a TDP leader said that the alliance is in place but they are still not sure if our voters will vote for the JSP candidate in seats where its candidates contest. Also, with the picture unclear about the BJP, the voter is looking more confused.
News Edit K.V.Raman
