Alliance with BJP for GVMC pollswill depend on ‘status’: TDP MP

Hairbabu unable to convince his party leadership on rail zone, he says

Telugu Desam Rajya Sabha member TG Venkatesh addressing the media in Visakhapatnam on Friday. (From left) Pydah Krishna Prasad, Jayanti Venkateswarlu and Mattapalli Chalamayya are seen. Photo: C.V.Subrahmanyam

TDP will not run after BJP for an alliance in the GVMC elections if that party failed to accord special category status and special package to Andhra Pradesh, Rajya Sabha member T.G. Venkatesh has said.

If they get it, the elections will be fought together. In spite of not getting the status, if BJP wanted to contest in alliance with TDP and if that party asked the party high command would consider it, he told reporters here on Friday.

BJP should also take getting the railway zone with Visakhapatnam as headquarters as a test case and if it got the zone ahead of the elections, it would get votes. Otherwise, it would face problems, he cautioned.

“Though the BJP State president hails from here and is a good man he is not able to convince his party leadership (on the zone),” the former Minister said.

If all the incentives and the 90 per cent of Central funds for projects were calculated and given there was no point in getting stuck over nomenclature (of special status), he elaborated. On special package, he said even Telangana got more in terms of percentage for its backward districts and “we are asking for more.”

He wanted representation to the Vysya community in the corporation elections.

Mr. Venkatesh, who returned after a tour of parts of Odisha, said Telugu people living in other States were facing problems. With TDP becoming a national party in Odisha as well as in Delhi and Maharashtra people were ready to contest on TDP tickets and it would depend on alliances there and the stand of regional and national parties, he said.

Jagan flayed

The TDP leader was critical of Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy for continuously raking up the issue of Amaravati and stating that farmers were cheated though hardly anyone complained. What farmers got for thousands of acres acquired for projects and SEZs during Y S Rajasekhar Reddy’s tenure was a maximum of Rs.5 lakh to Rs.6 lakh. Now an acre was commanding a price of Rs.1.5 crore. The Swiss Challenge method was as good as tender process and not nomination.

Taking exception to the writings and language being used, he said if it were Tamil Nadu the consequences would be entirely different and the paper would not be allowed.

State Arya Vysya Sangham president Jayanthi Venkateswarlu, philanthropist Mattapalli Chalamaiah, Pydah Krishna Prasad and Dr. Visveswara Rao were present.