Chengannur polls to strain BJP-BDJS ties

Thiruvananthapuram: The BDJS may go it alone in the Chengannur by-election putting BJP candidate P. S. Sreedharan Pillai in trouble.  The NDA is set to meet in Alappuzha on  Friday though the  Election Commission  is yet to announce the date for the by-election.  The  LDF and UDF have not announced  their candidates.

BDJS national president Tushar Vellapally is in New Delhi now. SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellapally Natesan told DC that  the BDJS had  not officially decided to sever the ties with the NDA. However, he slammed Mr  Sreedharan Pillai for not  taking  any initiative to sort out the differences between the BJP and the BDJS.

“The BDJS is disappointed with the BJP state leadership. When Sreedharan Pillai  contested the 2016 Assembly election from Chengannur,  the SNDP Yogam and BDJS  supported  him. But the friendship was a one-way affair,” he said.

A top BJP leader told DC that the party hoped to  get at least  50, 000 votes in the by-election.

“In  the 2016 election, Sreedharan Pillai managed to score 42, 000-plus votes.  But this time the entire machinery of BJP and RSS would work for him,” he said.

The RSS state leadership had  given the green signal  for his candidature at the BJP core committee meeting recently.  RSS State secretary and Prantha Karyavahak P.  Gopalankutty Master told DC that the BJP and Sangh Parivar would garner  all their resources for the success of the party.

“We have taken the Chengannur by-election seriously.  Sreedharan Pillai will be  an excellent candidate who has wide acceptance in Chengannur,” said  Mr Gopalankutty Master.

Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu will inaugurate the 40th anniversary of Sreedharan Pillai’s career as a  leading lawyer on February 17 when the Kozhikode public will accord a reception to him. This will be a launch pad for Mr  Pillai to enter the election contest.