The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : TDP struggles to hold flock together in Telangana

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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

TDP struggles to hold flock together in Telangana

Staff Reporter

Party hit by desertions wants cadre to wait till submission of Srikrishna panel report

Senior leaders hope party will play active role in formation of Telangana once report is submitted
Recent byelections raise a question on relevance of TDP in the prevailing political atmosphere

ADILABAD: Can Justice Srikrishna Committee save the day for Telugu Desam Party (TDP) which is hit by desertions in Telangana? Managers of this party in Adilabad district are hard put to convince leaders and cadres that better times will arrive following submission of the report by the Committee.

TDP leaders like Adilabad MP Ramesh Rathod and Adilabad MLA Jogu Ramanna want the cadres to wait until the end of December when the Srikrishna Committee is scheduled to submit its report on the political situation in the State. They promise them of the party playing an active role in formation of Telangana once the report is submitted.

Political pundits, however, are busy writing the obituary of TDP given its present condition. The desertions, they say, are the beginning of the end for the party in the region.

Among other things, the recent byelections in the district raised a question on the relevance of TDP in the prevailing political atmosphere. “The results of the byelections clearly indicate people do not believe the party's claim of being a Telangana protagonist outfit,” points out a leader from the party who plans to cross over soon to the TRS.

B. Goverdhan Reddy, a former Telugu Rythu district president, who recently joined the TRS, is more specific on this count.

“Under the present conditions, the party will have no takers if it issues a threat to launch an agitation if the Srikrishna Committee gives an unfavourable report. Neither can the party claim to have contributed to the success if the report is favourable to the cause,” he points out the strange predicament the party is in.

While the second and third rung leaders may find it easy to cross over, it is difficult for the elected representatives of higher ranks to do so. Nevertheless, if the grapevine is to be believed, the latter will form a Telangana unit of their party, not necessarily with N. Chandrababu Naidu at the helm!

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