The BJP’s invitation to Jana Sena Party (JSP) president Pawan Kalyan to participate in the NDA meeting scheduled to be held in New Delhi on July 18 brought into sharp focus the evolving political scenario in Andhra Pradesh vis-a-vis his dissatisfaction with the manner in which the BJP-JSP alliance struggled to make a significant headway against the ruling YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) and the possibility of JSP teaming up with the TDP, which neither party has dismissed so far.
Whether the BJP and JSP will continue their alliance or part their ways in the run-up to the 2024 elections depends on the outcome of Mr. Pwan Kalyan’s interactions with the BJP top brass including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The invitation for NDA meeting came against the backdrop of Mr. Pawan Kalyan’s exhortation to the opposition parties to not let the anti-YSRCP votes split and TDP national president N. Chandrababu Naidu’s call to the ‘democratic forces’ to form a coalition of sorts to thwart the YSRCP’s plan to retain power.
Though Mr. Pawan Kalyan has not been happy with some BJP leaders for quite some time due to their attitude towards the issues faced by the State, he did not take the risky gamble of snapping ties with the national party in haste having had a good relationship with the BJP leaders at the Centre. He had a one-on-one interaction with Mr. Modi on a couple of occasions but kept the cards close to his chest, lest he should give in to speculation about his strategy for the elections.
Mr. Pawan Kalyan had also met Mr. Naidu, which gave the impression that the JSP and TDP are going to form an alliance.
In fact, the political grapevine has it that the possibility of the three parties (BJP, JSP and TDP) coming together for the common cause of defeating the YSRCP cannot be ruled out despite their differences over core ideologies. What new dimension the JSP chief’s participation in the NDA meet is likely to add to State politics, therefore, remains to be seen as the election mood appears to have already set in.
