The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) has finally decided to ally with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh.
The TDP has reportedly agreed to give eight Lok Sabha seats and 25 Assembly seats to the BJP. A final decision in this regard is likely today.
The BJP had won four Lok Sabha seats in 1998 and was second in three constituencies. In the Assembly, the BJP has two sitting MLAs in a House of 294.
While the form and details of the alliance are yet to be finalised, the leaders of the two parties have decided to work together to defeat the Congress, which is very strong in the state.
Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are the two states where the Congress is strongest. The party had won 22 of the 42 Lok Sabha seats in the 1998 Lok Sabha elections. Both the BJP and the TDP have realised that they will need each other's support to stop the Congress from gaining strength because of the anti-incumbency factor. BJP spokesperson M Venkaiah Naidu said the alliance was formed to ensure that the Congress' gains were minimised.
The BJP's Andhra Pradesh unit leaders were opposed to the understanding since they wanted at least 10 Lok Sabha seats and 40 Assembly seats, which Naidu was not willing to part with.
The central BJP leaders, however, spoke to them to explain that their intransigence could result in the Congress gaining more ground.
Naidu spoke to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on the telephone on Tuesday night and told him to restrain the BJP's state unit from issuing provocative statements.
He proposed that the two parties contest the polls together, which was accepted by the BJP's central leadership, the party spokesperson said.
The details of the seat sharing arrangement would be finalised by the BJP's state unit, he added.
It was, however, not clear whether the TDP would contest as a constituent of the National Democratic Alliance.
The leaders of the two parties have decided to work together to defeat the Congress, which is very strong in Andhra Pradesh
