AP BJP plays safe on Janasena-TDP truck; Telangana leaders bat for Chandrababu on arrest

HYDERABAD: While Telangana leaders have been giving tongue-in- cheek replies on TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu's arrest, BJP leaders in Andhra Pradesh seemed to be playing it safe on the issue of alliance status between Jana Sena Party and the saffron party.

Telangana BJP incharge Kishan Reddy on Thursday said that the manner in which Naidu was arrested was incorrect and felt that he should have been served notices.

Meanwhile, on being asked if Naidu should have been arrested at all, former Telangana incharge MP Bandi Sanjay cleverly parried the question saying that whoever was guilty should be punished. He however hastened to add that Naidu's arrest was clearly a political vendetta.

Meanwhile Andhra BJP leaders have taken a different stand suggesting that the central leadership of the party would take a call on the alliance on the BJP-JSP combine.

In a statement issued by the party, the State BJP leaders said that a call on continuation of alliance with Jana Sena would be taken by the central leadership.

Reacting to the alliance of Jana Sena Party and the TDP, YSRCP general secretary Sajjala Ramakrishna Reddy alleged that Chandrababu Naidu and Pawan Kalyan hoodwinked the people of Andhra Pradesh by acting independently all these years. “Pawan Kalyan is a clone of Chandrababu Naidu in politics. The Jana Sena president worked for the TDP in 2014 and in 2019 the latter split the anti-Government vote,” he crticised.

Sajjala said that Chandrababu Naidu had given a responsibility to Pawan Kalyan to include the BJP in the TDP-Jana Sena alliance. “In his political career, Pawan Kalyan never announced his candidature for the Chief Minister post. Fans and followers of the actor-turned politician are in distress. The YSRCP is ready to face the elections anytime and around 70 per cent of the people are in support of YS Jagan Mohan Reddy,” he said.

Former Minister and YSRCP Machilipatnam MLA Perni Venkataramaiah (Nani) questioned whether Pawan Kalyan went to extend solidarity to Chandrababu Naidu in jail or to negotiate a deal with him. He crticised that ‘mulaqat’ with the former Chief Minister had turned into ‘milakhat’ for Pawan Kalyan.

Perni Nani added, “Pawan Kalyan’s alliance with the BJP is temporary, but with the TDP is permanent. Everyone thought that the Jana Sena president went to jail to extend support to Naidu. But after coming out of jail, it was proved that it is not sentiment but a settlement.”