Don't criticise ally BJP, N Chandrababu Naidu advises Telangana TDP

Hyderabad: Telugu Desam national president N. Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday turned down a plea from the party’s TS unit to adopt a political resolution in the upcoming Mahanadu favouring a united Opposition front to take on the TRS in the 2019 Assembly and Lok Sabha elections.

TS TD president L. Ramana, working president A. Revanth Reddy and politburo member Ravula Chandrasekhar Reddy met Mr Naidu in Amaravati during the day and discussed the political line the party should take in the Mahanadu on May 24. They also raised the possibility of the TS BJP unilaterally snapping ties with the TD.

Mr Reddy suggested to Mr Naidu that it would be better for the TS TD to take the initiative to build a political alternative to the TRS in the state by building bridges with other like-minded parties.

However, Mr Naidu spurned the move and told them that this was not the right time to work on alternatives like a united front as the elections would be held only after two years. Unless and until BJP national president Amit Shah openly said something against the alliance with TS TD, it would be “improper for us to think of alternatives,” he said.

Mr Naidu also advised party leaders in TS against criticising the state BJP leaders even as they were trashing the TD.

“We conveyed our feelings to Chandrababu and stressed on the need to build a political front in Telangana against the TRS, as part of a political resolution at the Mahanadu, but he has asked us to wait for some more time. He also told us that he would speak to BJP national leadership on the issue of alliances, and till that time, we were told not to precipitate matters,” Mr Reddy told DC after the meeting.