The Hindu : Seat sharing: BJP team arriving today

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Mar 01, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Seat sharing: BJP team arriving today

By Our Special Correspondent

TIRUPATI. Feb. 29. A State-level BJP team led by its national council member, P. V. Chalapathi Rao, is arriving here on Monday to discuss with the district party leaders and functionaries the party's status in Chittoor district.

This is one of the three committees constituted by the State party leadership to visit the districts allotted to them and assess the party's strong and minus points therein for the purpose of staking claim subsequently for the Assembly and the Lok Sabha seats in the districts concerned from its major alliance partner, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP).

The Tirupati Lok Sabha (SC) seat is already being held by the BJP in the dissolved House and in the normal course its incumbent, N. Venkateswamy, is likely to be re-nominated for the seat in view of his reasonably good track record both in terms of developmental works and conduct. But what is apparently introducing an element of uncertainty is reported attempts by some vested interests in the BJP to give up the Tirupati seat and ask for the Rajampet seat in view of the changed political equations over the last election.

In the alternative, the powers that be are said to be trying to exert pressure on the BJP high command, to stake its claim for the Rajampet seat too as the second seat in the Rayalaseema region to match its improved stocks in the area over the last elections.

In addition to this issue, the visiting BJP team has to identify the Assembly seats where it possibly could field its candidates in the district. The former State party president, Ch. Ramachandra Reddy, and a few senior party functionaries from the district are likely to help Mr. Chalapathi Rao in this exercise.

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Andhra Pradesh