The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) are likely to clinch a pre-election tie-up in Andhra Pradesh (AP) in a day or two, say media reports. If it becomes a reality, BJP would not have any election alliance with Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) in the state.
The two parties have been bargaining hard over seat-sharing to contest the Lok Sabha and the State Assembly elections to be held on 30 April and 7 May in AP.
Quoting sources, media reports on 2 April 2014 say that TDP has agreed to allot BJP eight Lok Sabha seats and 45 to 50 Assembly seats in Telangana region of AP. Telangana has 17 Lok Sabha and 119 Assembly seats. The bargaining by BJP-TDP took place till midnight on Tuesday in Hyderabad and the two sides are said to have come to an understanding over seat-sharing.
In Seemandhra, the BJP leaders were insisting on TDP to agree for an alliance to contest six Lok Sabha seats and about 18 to 20 Assembly seats. Seemandhra region in AP has 25 Lok Sabha seats and 175 Assembly seats. While TDP is strong in Seemandhra, BJP is perceived to have gained strength in Telangana by backing the cause of separate state for the region.
BJP's Telangana unit president Kishan Reddy had even suggested his party high command to have an electoral alliance with Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), which is claiming credit for achieving Telangana state formation and tipped to form government in the new state after winning majority in the ensuing election. However, BJP national leaders like Arun Jaitley are said to have ruled out any poll tie-up with TRS, as they see tie-up with the Nara Chandrababu Naidu-headed TDP more beneficial in AP.
The likely poll tie-up between BJP and TDP has another interesting development in the waiting. Foes in the family of late NT Rama Rao, the TDP founder might come together. Once the BJP-TDP tie up becomes fruitful, former union minister and now BJP leader Purandeswari, NTR's daughter, is likely to come closer to Naidu's TDP group, as the two parties would fight the elections together this time. Naidu is son-in-law of NTR.
It can be recalled here that BJP had also fought elections in 1999 in alliance with TDP and won seven Lok Sabha seats from AP.
TDP, which stood for United Andhra Pradesh for a long time during the movement for creation of Telangana, has been forced to ask for an election alliance with BJP in AP, particularly in Telangana.
And even Jana Sena, floated by actor Pawan Kalyan, is said to have supported the two parties' electoral tie-up. This development may surely affect Jagan Mohan Reddy's YSRCP's chances in Seemandhra region.
Meanwhile, Congress in Seemandhra, which is struggling to regain the lost hold in the region, has requested the party high command to depute Priyanka Gandhi to canvass. Even the party campaign committee chief Chiranjeevi, along with Congress Seemandhra unit president Raghuveera Reddy, has urged his fan clubs to join the party and campaign in the election. The two leaders have promised to give tickets to fans of Chiranjeevi to contest the election.
