Chandrababu Naidu Might Be The First One To Pull Out of NDA

With its ties with the BJP fraying, the TDP could be the first party to pull out of the National Democratic Alliance

- Rahul Devulapalli

After the BJP won the assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh on December 18, ecstatic party workers took to the streets in celebration, bursting firecrackers. On the same day, there were fireworks elsewhere, too. In Amaravati, the capital of Andhra Pradesh, a bitter war of words broke out between the BJP and its senior coalition partner, the Telugu Desam Party.

BJP leader Somu Veerraju, a member of the state legislative council, said the BJP would no longer accept a raw deal from the TDP. Babu Rajendra Prasad, a TDP MLC, responded to the criticism and said the BJP’s wins in Andhra Pradesh were the result of the total support of TDP workers. The TDP has 103 seats in the legislative assembly and the BJP has got four. In the legislative council, the TDP has 30 and the BJP two seats. With assembly and Lok Sabha polls due in 2019, the TDP might just be the first party to pull out of the National Democratic Alliance.

The sleepy, scenic coastal city of Visakhapatnam is of particular importance for both the TDP and the BJP. Compared with other districts, the BJP has a significant presence here with an MP, an MLA and an MLC. Of the seven MLAs from the city, six are from the TDP. The office of P. Vishnukumar Raju, the BJP MLA from North Vizag, is abuzz with activity, although Raju is away in Delhi on official work. Party workers at the office are miffed that the TDP government is passing off Central government schemes as its own without even displaying the image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on publicity pamphlets.