No progress in BJP-TDP alliance talks

Hyderabad: There is no progress in the alliance talks between the TDP and BJP in the run-up to the simultaneous Assembly and Lok Sabha elections in Andhra Pradesh.

It has been almost two weeks since TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu held talks with Home Minister Amit Shah and national president in New Delhi.

But since then, both sides have remained tight-lipped over the possibility of forging an alliance. While Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan is keen to have a tripartite alliance with BJP and TDP to dislodge YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, both TDP and BJP are said to be weighing their options.

A few members in the state unit of BJP are hoping that the party's high command will tread cautiously when it comes to an alliance with Naidu given his history of flip-flops.

“TDP has a strong track record of using BJP according to their convenience. We need to put in place certain safeguards so that TDP will not have the advantage of doing the same thing again,” a BJP leader told DH.

“There should be a TDP government in Andhra Pradesh which does not have a full majority but is depending on both Jana Sena and BJP for running it. That way BJP can be in a formidable position,” the leader added.

A section of the state BJP feels that if the alliance is necessary, out of the 175 assembly seats the party should try to negotiate along with Jana Sena and demand 75 seats for both Jana Sena and BJP together.

After Naidu's trip to Delhi on February 7, there were reports that he will have a meeting with Pawan Kalyan after which the latter will go to Delhi to take forward the discussions. But, Naidu and Pawan Kalyan have not met till now.

“If they are not part of the Central government and Jagan comes back to power it will be a nightmare for TDP,” said another BJP leader.

In 2014, both BJP and TDP fought the elections together in an alliance. Though Jana Sena was not part of the electoral pact, Pawan Kalyan supported the BJP-TDP alliance and campaigned.

The TDP and BJP combine came to power in 2014. However, in a U-turn, Naidu in 2018, just before the 2019 polls, snapped ties with BJP and walked out of the NDA. He also held meetings in Delhi and brought opposition parties on a common platform to fight against the BJP and Narendra Modi. Since, the 2019 polls, Naidu has been making efforts to build bridges with the BJP and finally had detailed talks on February 7 with the saffron party's top leaders on seat sharing.