BJP, JSP battle internal dissidence with many TDP defectors picked as Lok Sabha, Assembly candidates

VIJAYAWADA: Lack of tall leaders in the Jana Sena Party (JSP) and the BJP has led to a lot of unrest among cadres in the grand TDP-JSP-BJP alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in Andhra Pradesh.

As part of alliance, the BJP was allotted six MP and 10 MLA seats, out of the total number of 25 Lok Sabha and 175 Assembly seats in the State. Similarly, the JSP was offered 21 MLA and two MP seats.

However a closer look at the list of candidates put up by the BJP and the JSP indicates that most of them were established TDP or YSRCP leaders who had later defected to these parties. This is the very reason that had triggered disgruntlement among cadres in the BJP and the JSP. Most of the leaders, who dedicatedly worked for the party, especially since 2019 and expected a ticket, were denied one due to the grand alliance.

For example, in the BJP, only one genuine BJP leader with RSS roots, Bhupati Srinivas Varma, was given the party ticket from Narsapuram Parliamentary constituency. Rest of the five candidates are defectors from other parties.

This includes State BJP president Daggubati Purandeswari (Rajahmundry)- Congress, CM Ramesh (Anakapalli) - TDP, N Kiran Kumar Reddy (Rajampet)- Congress, Kothapalli Geetha (Araku-ST)- Jana Jagruti Party and Dr Vara Prasad (Tirupati-SC)- YSRCP.

Similar is the scenario for the Assembly seats. YS Chowdary, two-time MP from TDP, was been given the BJP ticket from Vijayawada (West) and C Adinarayana Reddy from Jammalamadugu, who defected from the YSRCP to the TDP and later to the BJP in 2019, were given tickets.

The situation is quite similar to the other alliance partner-the JSP. One of the two Lok Sabha likely to be finalised is Vallabhaneni Balashowry from the Machilipatnam constituency who recently defected from the ruling YSRCP.

Looking at the Assembly candidates, two TDP leaders- Former Deputy Speaker Mandali Buddha Prasad and Nimmaka Jayakrishna-who joined the JSP this week, are likely to get tickets from Avanigadda and Palakonda respectively.

This exodus of leaders joining the BJP and the JSP and being given tickets in quick succession has caused enough resentment among party loyalists so much so that the grand alliance leaders are now engaged in soothing the disgruntled leaders.