Pawan says Jana Sena will contest in 7 to 14 Assembly seats in Telangana

Warangal: Actor-politician Pawan Kalyan announced on Tuesday that his Jana Sena party would contest Telangana's seven to 14 Assembly seats and a "limited number" of Parliament seats.

Following a special puja performed at Sri Anjaneyaswamy temple by temple priests to his campaign vehicle ‘Varahi’, Pawan Kalyan told the media on Tuesday at Kondagattu in Jagtial district that his party, which is in alliance with the BJP in Andhra Pradesh, will decide one week before the Telangana elections with whom the Jana Sena would tie up.

The actor politician and Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan offering prayers to his campaign chariot Varahi at Kondagattu in Jagtial district on Tuesday. (Photo:DC)He stated that Jana Sena would be ready to join forces with any party in Telangana, while asserting that there would be more clarity after the announcement of election dates.

Kalyan, who met with key Jana Sena leaders at a private resort on the outskirts of Nachupally in Kodimyala mandal, said, “If other parties do not come forward, then the Jana Sena will fight alone in the elections.” He praised the tenacity of the Telangana people, saying that their fortitude had inspired him to form the Jana Sena and launch a movement to fight for the interests of the common people.

Stating that he welcomed the formation of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), he asserted that Jana Sena's role in Telangana politics would be limited. “We will first study the deeper issues plaguing Telangana state. Subsequently, our party will decide on how many seats to fight in the state,” he stated.

Kalyan stated that Telangana was the land of his rebirth and recalled how he survived a major accident during an election campaign in 2009. “This is due to the blessings of Anjaneyaswamy,” he said.

While pointing out that governance in Telangana was better than that in Andhra Pradesh, Kalyan noted that the two states' problems are distinct and cannot be compared. Targeting the YSRC, the Jana Sena leader claimed that Andhra Pradesh's political parties lacked a clear ideology and that the state's so-called leaders were stoking casteist tensions.

He claimed that there were no democratic values and that the leaders in AP were "murdering their own uncles". Earlier, a large number of fans and supporters gathered from neighbouring areas to see their favourite actor. Huge cutouts, flexies, and banners were placed on either side of the street at Kondagattu to welcome him.