HYDERABAD: The camaraderie between Telugu Desam and the Jana Sena chiefs, N. Chandrababu Naidu and Pawan Kalyan, has not percolated to their cadres if the events of the past two days are anything to go by.
Pawan Kalyan called his cadre to support Monday’s bandh call given by the TD in protest against Naidu’s arrest. At the ground level, there was no overwhelming support from the Jana Sena cadre except in a few places where the party’s flag was seen.
On the other hand, Pawan Kalyan literally walked extra mile to meet Naidu. TD leaders and media houses affiliated with the party downplayed his effort. The lone exception was a tweet condemning the police action blocking Pawan Kalyan by Naidu’s son and TD general secretary Lokesh who, according to sources, is determined to work on the alliance with all genuineness and sincerity.
Police prevented Pawan Kalyan from flying to Vijayawada citing the tense law and order situation, forcing the Jana Sena chief to hit the road. Mobbed by his fans in their thousands, he got down from the vehicle, walked for some distance and even lay down on the road when police repeatedly tried to prevent his entry into Vijayawada.
“Sadly, the Telugu Desam leaders and media affiliated to the party underplayed Pawan’s efforts to resist the oppressive administration,” a senior party leader said adding that no channel had telecast Pawan’s sit-in for about one hour.
It was the Jana Sena chief who gave a call for consolidation of anti-Jagan Mohan Reddy forces and vowed to work towards an alliance that would ensure that the Opposition vote was not split. Despite being trolled by the ruling party as an “adopted son” and “paid artiste”, Pawan held a series of meetings with his TD counterpart, apparently to cement the electoral ties by narrowing down on seat sharing.
“He (Pawan Kalyan) is determined to go with the TD, come what may. He is ready to sever ties with the BJP if he has to choose between the two,” a senior party leader and Pawan confidant told Deccan Chronicle. In fact, Pawan is trying his best to convince the BJP to join the alliance.
However, the cadre was not over-enthusiastic about the poll pact. Surprisingly, after the arrest of Naidu, the mood in the Jana Sena camp is that going independently against the two alleged corrupt regimes — the TD and the YSRC — would have been the right thing to do.
