HDK sees Chandrababu Naidu as champion of alliance against BJP

Amaravati/ Vijayawada: Lending a shoulder to the efforts which are still in embryonic stage though, Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy and his AP counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu here on Friday went over the broad contours of the alliance in the making at the national level against the BJP-led NDA.

The two leaders, who discussed several issues in the formation of the alliance over a cup of coffee, decided that more such meetings should take place for the new formation to take a definite shape.

Though Chandrababu Naidu appears to be not so inimical to the Congress lately, the AP leader, however, is not yet ready to announce it officially. But he would have to be part of the formation at the national level in which the Congress would be there though it is too early to say if the grand-old party would be leading the alliance.

Even Congress president Rahul Gandhi is not staking a claim for the post of the Prime Minister as it would mean jumping the gun before the alliance takes birth. He has gone on record saying that a decision on who should become the PM would be taken after taking into consideration the performance of each constituent of the alliance.

Echoing Rahul Gandhi's opinion, Kumaraswamy, after the meeting with Naidu, said that it was too premature to talk about who would become the PM. "The candidate for Prime Minister's position would be decided after the elections are over. At present, the task before us is to forge a broad-based alliance against the NDA at the Centre," he said.

Though the mist over the grand alliance has not yet cleared completely, the indications are that southern leaders want to first cement a formation in the south of Vindhyas. The effort is to stitch together an alliance of anti-BJP parties in the south - Telugu Desam in TS and AP, DMK in Tamil Nadu, CPM as Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan too is evincing interest in the formation of an anti-BJP alliance. The idea is to rope in finally as many as 17 regional parties and national party Congress.

For the time being, the TDP sources are avoiding inclusion of the Congress in the alliance as it is not yet ready to do political business with it though it is common knowledge that the front that is being cobbled together cannot be without the Congress. The Congress for its part does not want to be seen as heading the alliance as it might be mistaken as one which is throwing its weight around.

Kumaraswamy after his tete-a-tete with Naidu, described the AP Chief Minister as the man behind the formation of earlier fronts with various parties in the past, implying that Naidu could take leadership of the emerging alliance. Kumaraswamy, after offering prayers to Goddess Kanaka Durga at Durgamalleswara Swamy Varla Devasthanam in Vijayawada, praised Chandrababu Naidu sky high, describing him as a leader with a vision.

He said though Andhra Pradesh has no capital, yet it was progressing because of Naidu's leadership. Naidu for his part too has been keeping warm relations with the JDS and even was seen rubbing shoulders with Kumarswamy on the day of his swearing in at Bengaluru despite the fact that Congress leaders, including Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi and several others were milling around. Naidu shook hands with Rahul Gandhi and exchanged pleasantries, indicating that the sharp edges of TDP's enmity for Congress had somewhat blunted of late.