Hyderabad: Telugu Desam Party in favour of pact with BJP
Hyderabad: The seat sharing alliance between the Telugu Desam and the Bharatiya Janata Party under GHMC limits is making headway, though in other Telangana districts the logjam continues. The BJP has demanded 12 Assembly seats and the Secunderabad Lok Sabha seat in view of the “Modi wave” it perceives in urban areas.
There are 24 Assembly seats under the Greater Hyderabad limits.Though there is some resistance from the local TDP leaders, the party high command is said to be in favour of acceding to the BJP’s demand on the condition that the BJP should reciprocate in similar manner with regard to TDP’s demand of seeking more seats in other Telangana districts.
Interestingly, the BJP is not playing the “Telangana card” to secure more seats from the TDP under the GHMC limits unlike in other Telangana districts. Instead, it is flashing the “Modi card” arguing that youth and tech-savvy voters will want to vote for the BJP.
The BJP is seeking Amberpet, Musheerabad, Khairatabad, Sanathnagar, Goshamahal, Malakpet, Karwan, Yakutpura, Uppal, LB Nagar, Qutbullapur and Malkajgiri Assembly seats.
Besides, it is also asking the TDP to look at the possibility of giving either the Sherilingampally or the Rajendranagar seat. But it has made it clear that it will not accept anything less than 12 Assembly seats.
The local TDP leaders are bringing pressure on the party high command not to allot more than eight seats to the BJP, arguing that the many years of effort they have put in, in strengthening the TDP will be wasted if they don’t get the party ticket.
The city BJP leaders point out that they have the upper hand. “All the surveys, be it national or local, point to a “Modi wave” sweeping the country. It is even more in cities due to youth and tech-savvy people, who are in favour of Modi and BJP. On the other hand, the TD is weak in Hyderabad or elsewhere in Telangana,” said B. Venkat Reddy, BJP Greater Hyderabad president.
He said that the party has renewed efforts to expand its cadre base on the city’s outskirts and should be allowed to field its candidates from these constituencies.The BJP also hopes to attract Seemandhra voters under GHMC limits if the proposed alliance with Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena party works out.