Naidu Paradrops In Delhi To Meet Rahul Gandhi, Likely To Plead With SP-BSP To Include Congress In UP Alliance

Despite a humiliating defeat his party suffered in the recently concluded Telangana assembly elections, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu has not given up the hope of emerging as the pivot of a grand anti-BJP front.

Naidu met Congress President Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders on Tuesday (8 December) in Delhi to expedite the crystallisation of opposition unity, New Indian Express reported. The Congress and TDP already fought as a part of an alliance in Telangana.

According to TDP sources, Naidu apparently met Rahul at the latter’s residence in a bid to discuss the fallout of the decision by Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh to keep Congress out of the Mahagadbandan.

In the assessment of SP and BSP leaders, Congress is an electorally inconsequential force in UP and they do not want to give it a fresh lease of life by including it in the alliance. Key strategists of the two principal opposition parties in UP think that Congress will be more useful as a spoiler contesting independently.

Naidu is hoping to meet SP president Akhilesh Yadav and BSP chief Mayawati and persuade them to include Congress in the grand alliance.

Naidu also met NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and PDP’s Farooq Abdullah, among others. He reportedly discussed plans to unite all opposition parties on a common platform and iron out differences among regional parties.

Naidu is also expected to meet Janata Dal (S) president Deve Gowda, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury, among others.

Several opposition leaders are expected to share the stage at a massive rally called by West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee on 19 January in Kolkata billed as a huge show of strength in the run up to the elections.

“We are expecting all opposition leaders will join the January 19 rally and we will meet and discuss the alliance at other meetings to be held in Delhi. There is a democratic compulsion to save the nation and all of us will have to join. How we come together at the national level remains to be worked out. I am discussing it,” Naidu said.

Naidu will also meet the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) lawmakers in the national capital today (9 January).

Naidu’s latest move to pitchfork himself as a key political operative on national stage comes a day after a blistering attack by Prime Minister Narendra Modi against him. In an interaction with BJP leaders and party workers in Andhra Pradesh via video conference, Modi accused Naidu of miserably failing to run the state. He also accused Naidu of crippling the state with his corrupt administration.