Vijayawada: The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) is set to improve its tally in the Rajya Sabha by at least three after the biennial elections to the Council of States, slated to be held on June 11.
The TDP currently has six MPs in Rajya Sabha, including two from Telangana, of whom Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Y Satyanarayana Chowdary will retire next month.
Four Rajya Sabha seats in Andhra Pradesh will fall vacant next month with the retirement of two Congress and one BJP and TDP members each.
Union Minister of State for Commerce Nirmala Sitharaman of BJP and two former Union Ministers Jairam Ramesh and J D Seelam of Congress will also retire at the end of their term on June 21.
Nirmala, of course, completed just two years as she filled in a vacancy caused by the death of former MP N Janardhan Reddy.
Given its strength of 102 members in the 176-member Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly, the TDP can comfortably win three seats.
It is now aiming to clinch the fourth vacant seat from the state, given the defection of 17 YSR Congress MLAs so far.
The TDP has the support of four BJP and two independents members as well.
TDP leaders claim a few more MLAs of YSRC would cross over ahead of the Rajya Sabha election and help it win the fourth seat also.
The YSRC doesn't have a single member in the Upper House of Parliament and hopes to make its debut now.
If only it could ensure none of its depleted strength of 50 MLAs jumped the ship, the YSRC can hope to realise its dream of making it to Rajya Sabha.
Otherwise, its rebels are sure to mar YSRC's prospects, in tune with the strategy being worked out by TDP.
