There are no permanent friends and permanent enemies in politics. Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N. Chandrababu Naidu is clearly on a mission to revive his old friendship with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre. In the hope of bringing back glory to the ailing TDP and to protect it from the ruling YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) back home, Mr. Naidu is making every effort he can to join hands with an old friend which his party has ignored at the cost of repeated setbacks in the last few years.
Looking for an ally
The TDP’s growing desperation for a strong ally has been quite obvious in Mr. Naidu’s words and deeds. Recently, in an interview to this newspaper, when asked whether he was open to exploring a return to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Mr. Naidu said: “We must explore it, otherwise others will exploit us.” This is an indication that he is worried about the BJP-YSRCP friendship. The BJP, in fact, had wanted the YSRCP in the Union Cabinet but the regional party has always been averse to it, being content, instead, with extending issue-based support to the BJP. Two weeks ago, after the TDP’s offices were attacked by miscreants, Mr. Naidu alleged that party persons were being targeted by YSRCP-backed mobs and requested Union Home Minister Amit Shah to deploy Central forces to ensure adequate security to the party’s offices.
The TDP’s tie-up with the BJP in 2014 had been successful. The TDP had gained from the anti-Congress sentiment following the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh as well as the ‘Modi wave’. The alliance was strongly supported by the popular actor, Pawan Kalyan. But trouble started brewing between the partners in 2018 over the issue of central funding to the State. Mr. Naidu was also upset that the Centre was not granting special category status to Andhra Pradesh and finally snapped ties with the NDA. The BJP argued then that it had always been willing to grant the monetary equivalent of special category status to Andhra Pradesh. Mr. Kalyan launched a scathing attack against the State government, which TDP ministers alleged was being done at the behest of the BJP.
Patching up
After this fallout, Mr. Naidu started exploring alliances with the Congress and other parties, but these were unsuccessful. And so, Mr. Naidu was forced to wage a lone battle in the 2019 polls and met with an embarrassing defeat in the hands of the YSRCP. Post this debacle, Mr. Naidu has expressed regret — both in public and in private meetings with party members — for snapping ties with the NDA. During the post-poll meet of the party, Mr. Naidu said that he had nothing against the BJP and that his decisions were purely aimed at protecting the interests of the State.
Over the years, Mr. Naidu’s softened stand can be seen in his appreciation for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In April 2020, for instance, Mr. Naidu hailed Mr. Modi for taking a “bold and statesman-like decision” to extend the COVID-19 lockdown. But the patch up with the BJP is not going to be easy. It might be hard for the BJP to ignore the two betrayals of the TDP — first after the 2004 polls when Mr. Naidu blamed and deserted the BJP after losing to Congress’s Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy; and the second in 2018, when the TDP snapped ties with the NDA. In 2019, Mr. Shah had said firmly that the doors of the NDA would be permanently shut for the TDP. The party re-iterated this stand last month. Yet, anything is possible, says a senior BJP leader in the State on the condition of anonymity. After all, the Congress, a foe, suddenly became a friend for the TDP in 2018. For the TDP, whose prospects seem bleak in the short term, finding an ally is crucial.
appaji.r@thehindu.co.in
