The Hindu : BJP cadre `unhappy' with pact on seats

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Mar 18, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

BJP cadre `unhappy' with pact on seats

By Y. Mallikarjun

HYDERABAD, MARCH 17. The marginal increase of one Lok Sabha and three Assembly constituencies in the seat-sharing agreement with the TDP has been received with disappointment by the rank and file of the BJP. The party has been allotted 27 Assembly and nine Lok Sabha seats under the arrangement.

BJP sources have admitted that the pact had indeed caused dismay among its cadre and they will have to `pacify' them by stating that the high command's decision has to be respected keeping in view the ultimate objective of ensuring the return of the Vajpayee Government to power. A BJP leader said that he had received telephone calls from various districts from the party men expressing unhappiness over the `less number' of seats given to BJP.

The sources say that it will be a `difficult and challenging' task for the leadership to select the `best' nominees for the 27 seats.

Though the State BJP leadership from the beginning maintained that its strength had increased all over the State and it will be bargaining for more seats based on `its strength.' the BJP general secretary, Pramod Mahajan, apparently was not able to convince the TDP supremo, N. Chandrababu Naidu, to part with the numbers sought by the State BJP leaders.

Mr. Mahajan held discussions with the State BJP president, N. Indrasena Reddy, the Union Ministers -- Bandaru Dattatreya and Krishnam Raju - the former BJP national president, Bangaru Laxman, and other State leaders before meeting Mr. Naidu. The State BJP leadership urged him to seek 42 Assembly and 12 Lok Sabha seats for the party to have `respectability' since the TRS too was allotted an equal number of Assembly seats by the Congress.

However, the claim for more seats was stonewalled by Mr. Chandrababu Naidu, who questioned why the BJP was seeking more Lok Sabha seats in the State when it had not done so with the NDA allies in other States.

When asked who had succeeded in the seat-sharing talks, Mr. Mahajan pointed to Mr. Naidu and the latter to the BJP leader.

While the BJP would like to retain the eight Lok Sabha seats it had contested last time, the party is seeking either Nellore, Hindupur or Nalgonda for the ninth seat.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh