Although Pawan Kalyan clarified that the alliance would continue, his speech was laden with references to alliance principles and the TDP's discomforting approach.
Published Jan 27, 2024 | 9:31 PM ⚊ Updated Jan 27, 2024 | 9:31 PM
Chandrababu, Pawan Kalyan, and Nara Lokesh. (Supplied)
During the Republic Day celebrations at his party office in Mangalagiri, Jana Sena supremo Pawan Kalyan talked about how a section of party leaders is unhappy with TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu “unilaterally” announcing his candidate for an Assembly constituency in Andhra Pradesh.
They were referring to Naidu declaring three-time MLA V Jogeswara Rao as his candidate from Mandapeta without first discussing it with ally Jana Sena.
In a counter move, Pawan Kalyan announced that Jana Sena will contest two seats: Rajanagaram and Razole. “Just like Chandrababu Naidu may have faced pressure to announce the tickets, I too found myself in a similar situation and thus decided to announce the tickets,” he added.
Although he clarified that the Jana Sena-TDP alliance would continue, his speech was laden with references to alliance principles and the TDP’s discomforting approach.
Pawan Kalyan, an ally of BJP-led NDA, announced the pact with the TDP when its chief Chandrababu Naidu was in Rajamahendravaram Central Jail in the second week of September, arrested in connection with the Skill Development Scam. However, the BJP has not announced its decision to join the alliance with the TDP.
In an interview on a YouTube channel on 21 December 2023, Naidu’s son, Nara Lokesh, told a journalist that his father and TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu would be the Chief Minister candidate of the TDP-JSP alliance.
In response, Jana Sena leaders insisted that Pawan Kalyan either form an alliance with only a power-sharing agreement with the TDP or contest the elections in alliance only with the BJP.
All political parties in Andhra Pradesh seem to be betting on the Kapu community, a peasant caste estimated to make up around 20 percent of the state’s population, having a decisive role in the elections in the coastal region.
Pawan Kalyan, who hails from the Kapu community, is seen as the hope for their community by its leaders, who also advocate a Kapu as Chief Minister in the state as an alternative to the Reddy-dominated YSRCP and the Kamma-dominated TDP.
The Kapu community believes that their decades-long demand for reservation under the Backward Class (BC) category will only be realised with a “Kapu Chief Minister” in power, as neither the YSRCP nor the TDP has confirmed the quota thus far.
Despite open displeasure and backlash from Jana Sena leaders and the Kapu community over the remarks of Nara Lokesh, Pawan remains tight-lipped on the issue.
Former Congress party MP Chegondi Harirama Jogaiah, founder of the Kapu Samkshema Sena, who supported Pawan Kalyan, previously shared his views with South First. He suggested that without power-sharing for Pawan Kalyan in the alliance, doubts arise regarding the transfer of votes from the Jana Sena to the TDP.
This scepticism stems from the historical hostility between the Kamma and Kapu communities, which intensified after the assassination of prominent Kapu leader, late Congress MLA Vangaveeti Mohana Ranga, in 1988 during the TDP regime, and allegations of involvement.
Jogaiah highlighted that many from the Kapu community, who aspire to see Pawan Kalyan as the Chief Minister, may be disappointed if their longstanding pursuit of having a Kapu Chief Minister is not realised. Also, the prospect of Naidu, a Kamma from the TDP, being the sole Chief Minister would further not sit well with the Kapu community as there is hostility between communities.
“Therefore, there is uncertainty regarding the transfer of votes within the alliance. The transfer of votes within the alliance would happen if you create a situation of necessity between both the communities, which would happen only with power sharing,” Jogaiah opined.
However, Pawan Kalyan addressed this issue in a recent meeting, referencing one of his film dialogues. He stated, “Sometimes, a strong man wearing a tight coat would feel uncomfortable; likewise, leaders with four decades of experience may feel uncomfortable in an alliance, but the ground situation is different.”
These remarks are a reference to the TDP’s confidence in winning the 2024 Assembly elections.
Regarding Nara Lokesh’s comments, he remarked, “It might have been easy for leaders with vast political backgrounds to slip up, but with a large heart, I refrained from responding to it in the interest of the state.”
As discomfort continued to brew, the TDP’s announcement of two tickets marked the end of Pawan Kalyan’s silence, particularly regarding the Mandapeta Assembly ticket, which Jana Sena leaders aspired for.
In response to the TDP’s “unilateral” move of announcing candidates in a public meeting, Pawan Kalyan also announced his party’s decision to contest from two seats.
In the 2019 elections, the Razole (SC) Assembly seat was the lone constituency won by Jana Sena out of 175 constituencies. Meanwhile, in Rajanagaram, Jana Sena secured an 11 percent vote share in 2019 and was placed third, with the YSRCP candidate Jakkampudi Raja emerging victorious with 51 percent of the votes.
While there is no backlash on the Araku Valley Assembly seat from Jana Sena, there is disappointment over the Mandapeta Assembly seat. Jana Sena, which secured an 18 percent vote share, reportedly saw a spike of around 28 percent, according to party internal reports, prompting leaders to aspire for the ticket.
Within hours of his speech, the first response came, interestingly, not from the TDP but from the YSRCP. Andhra Minister of Water and Irrigation, Ambati Rambabu, stated that Pawan Kalyan should understand the nature of Chandrababu, who neither followed alliance principles nor any principles.
However, former minister and YSRCP MLA Perni Nani presented a different perspective, stating that it’s not about alliance dharma (principles) but all about drama. To address the resentment against him within the party over the allegations of being sold out to the TDP, he announced the two tickets, which were already internally agreed upon but declared publicly as his unilateral announcement.
He pointed out that for the last four-and-a-half years, TDP in-charges were not appointed for Rajanagaram and Razole constituencies, so it clearly shows that the TDP doesn’t want these seats. So, its all a drama by Pawan Kalyan.
On the other hand, TDP party member and former MLA Bonda Uma defended the announcements, questioning why the YSRCP would have a problem with seats allocated to the Jana Sena being announced. He clarified that the TDP has no issue with Pawan announcing candidates for two seats.
Uma said the TDP-Jana Sena seat-sharing talks are almost finalised, indicating that leaders will announce the details soon. Pawan and Chandrababu have already discussed how many seats each party will contest.
But Bonda Uma didn’t react to Pawan Kalyan’s remarks on Nara Lokesh or those referring to Naidu.
Senior journalist and political analyst Dasaradi Sharma, speaking to South First, noted differing views within Jana Sena and BJP regarding an alliance with the TDP. However, Pawan Kalyan’s continuous insistence has led to the perception that he is subservient to the TDP, despite resistance from within the JSP-BJP.
He suggested that Pawan Kalyan may travel to Delhi in the next two days to finalise the alliance, hinting at underlying issues between BJP and JSP regarding an alliance with the TDP.
Another senior political analyst, Telakapalli Ravi, speaking to South First, observed that Pawan Kalyan’s apology to the Jana Sena cadre indicates a communication gap between the TDP and the Jana Sena over the candidate’s announcement.
“His reference to Nara Lokesh as a man coming from a big family and alliance to strong people (referring to Chandrababu) could be a discomfort, which means to me that the TDP may have taken the Jana Sena alliance for granted and, hence, Pawan Kalyan referred to them as big and strong,” he added.
He pointed out that the TDP’s political buro member and former MLA Bonda Uma has not responded to Pawan Kalyan’s comments but focuses only on attacking the YSRCP. Ravi suggested that if the TDP continues to remain silent on Kalyan’s remarks about the unilateral announcement of the two tickets, it would be the second time Naidu would have crossed alliance principles. As Pawan Kalyan continues to maintain this stance, it could harm the TDP’s prospects in the 2024 Assembly elections.
So far, Chandrababu Naidu has not made any comments on power sharing with the Jana Sena.
But, according to reports, Nara Lokesh recently made an unofficial visit to Delhi to discuss alliances with the BJP. The sources tell South First that the BJP-Jana Sena will likely get six Lok Sabha and 35 Assembly seats as part of the alliance with the TDP.
However, it remains to be seen whether the BJP will join the TDP-JSP alliance and how seat sharing or power sharing would work.
So far, Naidu has not uttered a word on the Chief Minister candidate. But he had appealed to the public at the November 2022 Kurnool rally to give him one last chance to take Andhra Pradesh to the top — indirectly referring that he might retire by 2029.
