A day after the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) spearheaded a landslide win in Andhra Pradesh, party president N Chandrababu Naidu said on Wednesday that the TDP would continue to be a part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
“I am going to New Delhi today to attend the NDA meeting. I am with NDA only. I will let you know if there are any other developments,” Naidu said, speaking to the media for the first time after Tuesday’s massive victory.
The TDP-led NDA alliance won 164 of the 175 seats in the Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh and the party won 16 out of the 25 Lok Sabha seats in the state.
With the BJP banking on its allies to form the government, Naidu and Jana Sena Party (JSP) chief K Pawan Kalyan will be going to Delhi on Wednesday afternoon to attend the NDA meeting. Naidu will also invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other BJP leaders to his swearing-in ceremony at Amaravati on June 9.
Naidu said he was grateful to the JSP and the BJP for ensuring the anti-incumbency votes were not split and for helping the TDP-led NDA to a historic win. Thanking the people of Andhra Pradesh for what he called “a historic mandate that would be written in golden letters”, Naidu said that people had suffered under the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) regime.
The YSRCP was reduced to a mere 11 seats in the Assembly elections. “The freedom to express and freedom to even live had been taken away by the YSRCP. Not only the TDP and JSP supporters and cadres but the common man also suffered a lot. The YSRCP policies have set the state back 30 years. We have been given a huge responsibility by the people and we will try to fulfil their expectations,” Naidu said.
He said that the ‘Super Six’ guarantees – from a monthly unemployment allowance and grants to women to free gas cylinders – that the alliance had promised in its manifesto have been received well by the people and his government will start implementing them. Naidu said that it was due to the efforts of leaders and cadres of all three parties, the TDP, the JSP and the BJP, that it was possible to defeat the YSRCP. “I am grateful to Prime Minister Modi, Amit Shah and BJP leaders who came to Andhra Pradesh, local leadership D Purandeswari and others who helped make it a combined effort,” Naidu said.
The TDP on its own won 135 Assembly seats, JSP 21 and BJP eight. The TDP won 16 Lok Sabha seats, BJP three, and JSP two seats while the YSRCP won four.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First uploaded on: 05-06-2024 at 12:11 IST
Aisha Patel is a dedicated Indian correspondent with a deep understanding of the nation’s diverse affairs. With a background in Indian culture, politics, and current events, she provides in-depth analysis and timely reporting on domestic issues within India.
