Hyderabad: TDP president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu pulled out of the NDA on Friday over the issue of special status to Andhra Pradesh. The party also gave a separate no-confidence notice against the Centre in Lok Sabha.
“We have decided to move out of NDA. The support has been removed. We gave them (BJP-led NDA) time to change their mind, but nothing happened,” senior TDP leader CM Ramesh said, following which BJP said that TDP’s decision was inevitable after “its mischievous propaganda” against the Centre.
In a statement, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) confirmed the move and said that TDP has decided to quit NDA, and the decision was unanimously taken by party politburo. Naidu alleged that the BJP and PM Modi are “trying to weaken regional parties”.
Telugu Desam MP Thota Narasimham submitted a no-confidence notice to Lok Sabha secretary general Snehlata Srivastava against the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Friday.
“TDP’s decision to quit was inevitable after “its mischievous propaganda” against Centre. People of AP have now realised that the TDP is resorting to lies to cover up its inept & inert governance. Far from being a threat, TDP’s exit is a timely opportunity for the BJP to grow in AP,” BJP spokesperson GVL Narasimha Rao tweeted.
Meanwhile, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee welcomed the TDP’s decision and said that the “current situation warrants such action to save the country from disaster”. In a tweet, the CM also requested opposition parties to work against “atrocities, economic calamity and political instability”.
I appeal to all political parties in the Opposition to work closely together against atrocities, economic calamity and political instability
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) March 16, 2018
Earlier, Naidu’s party had decided to support YSR Congress Party’s motion against the Modi government in the Parliament. However, after a meeting of the TDP members, they decided to give a separate no-confidence motion.
The Andhra Pradesh chief minister had been under pressure from YSR Congress chief Jagan Reddy, who had dared him to pull out of the alliance as both leaders engage in a game of one-upmanship on the issue of special status. Reddy had alleged that Naidu was not doing so as he was afraid of “witch-hunting” by Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah.
The YSR Congress Party is also set to move a no-confidence motion against the NDA government on Friday.
The TDP had returned to BJP-led NDA a month before the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. It had severed ties with the BJP after its debacle at the hands of Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy-led Congress in 2004. Naidu had even called BJP a communal party which had drowned him with it.
The popularity of Jaganmohan Reddy and the Modi wave in urban pockets of AP forced Naidu to go for an alliance with the BJP. He had taken a huge risk and it had paid off.
But the relationship has never been the same post results. Naidu was miffed with Modi over allocation of portfolios to no special aid to Andhra Pradesh.
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