The mission of senior BJP leader Prakash Javadekar to bring about unanimity among Telangana BJP functionaries on forging an alliance with the TDP ran into rough weather on Monday with State BJP president G. Kishan Reddy throwing a spanner in the works.
Mr. Javadekar held discussions with Mr. Reddy for the second time in two days after he was rushed by the national party to iron out differences among Telangana leaders on the move to arrive at a seat-sharing pact with the TDP for the coming Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. On the possible alliance with the TDP, he told The Hindu , “We will let you know if something is happening.”
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A majority of senior BJP leaders in Telangana favour a tie-up, while Mr. Reddy and a few others are opposing it stoutly. Backing Mr. Reddy, RSS functionaries from Telangana region too are opposed to a possible alliance with the TDP.
It is learnt that Mr. Reddy and BJP floor leader in the Assembly, Yendala Lakshminarayana, have expressed their opposition to the tie-up during their confabulations with Mr. Javadekar. Mr. Reddy is firm that the party should contest all seats on its own as it would help strengthen the party’s base in Telangana.
It is also learnt that Telangana BJP leaders wanted more than 50 Assembly and eight Lok Sabha seats in the event of a tie-up with the TDP. In a bid to mollify Mr. Reddy and others, Mr. Javadekar reportedly assured them that the party leadership would bargain for more.
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Other senior leaders with whom Mr. Javadekar had interacted, however, wanted the party to firm up a deal with the TDP soon. Mr. Javadekar maintained that he held discussions with party leaders on candidates’ selection and election preparedness.
After TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu gave enough indications of his willingness to sail with the BJP, the party’s central leadership is keen to have a tie-up with the party in both Telangana and Seemandhra regions.
With the central parliamentary board set to meet in the next few days, the national leadership is keen to clinch the deal with the TDP.