Chandrababu Naidu emerges as a force to reckon with after Nandyal poll

Chandrababu Naidu  emerges as a force to reckon with after Nandyal poll
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Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu may emerge as a force to reckon with in his alliance camp with the BJP after the byelection result in Nandyal. Cracks in the alliance firmament surfaced in the recent past suggesting that the parting of ways for the TDP and the BJP is not far away. Gulf widened when Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave a 40-minute one-to-one interface to Jagan and the latter declare

Vijayawada: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu may emerge as a force to reckon with in his alliance camp with the BJP after the byelection result in Nandyal. Cracks in the alliance firmament surfaced in the recent past suggesting that the parting of ways for the TDP and the BJP is not far away. Gulf widened when Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave a 40-minute one-to-one interface to Jagan and the latter declared his party’s support to the BJP’s Presidential candidate.

The BJP understandably appeared to be in a mood to find a relatively more viable ally in Jagan after it entertained a thought that Naidu was no longer an asset. In addition, Jagan is reportedly viewed as a weak wicket in the eyes of the BJP than Naidu in the game poaching on weaklings.

The perceived mistrust in the ruling alliance led to a raw deal for the Naidu government in terms of assistance from the NDA government, be it bridging the resource gap in the state’s budget or funding for the Polavaram project or financial assistance for capital construction. The Chief Minister could not hide his displeasure over poor flow of funds from the Centre for the Polavaram project in an interaction with the media persons recently.

“After all, Polavaram is a national project to be fully funded by the Centre in line with the AP State Reorganization Act, 2014. The state government has to raise funds to spend on the project works. We spent Rs 3,200 crore which is expected to be reimbursed by the Centre”, he said, while expressing his resolve to complete the project by 2018. When the state government has projected the revenue deficit at Rs 16,300 crore for the year of bifurcation, the Centre made it clear that it’s only Rs 7000 crore.

In the backdrop of discordant notes in the alliance partners, the BJP offered to campaign for the TDP in Nandyal. Fearing backlash from the Muslims, a decisive force, the Chief Minister cautiously avoided the BJP and fended for himself. Jana Sena leader Pawan Kalyan too declared that he chose to be neutral. But the TDP took the stride in its favour and rode itself to a roaring victory.

The Nandyal victory for the TDP is expected to reinforce its electoral ties with the BJP in the Kakinada municipal elections also. “I am sure, we will go together as trusted and strong allies till the upcoming elections at least with the strength of the Nandyal verdict”, commented a senior TDP leader.

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