Leaving YSR Congress chief Jaganmohan Reddy and Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan aside, the ruling Telugu Desam Party had gone all out to target Bharatiya Janata Party and name it enemy No. 1 for the 2019 elections. While TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu had launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP national president Amit Shah for betraying the State, Minister Nara Lokesh went one step forward and declared that BJP is the enemy No. 1 for TDP in the next elections. He discounted the YSR Congress and Jana Sena as rivals in the State and admitted that the TDP would fight the next elections against BJP.
Though there is nothing for BJP in the State to lose, the TDP leadership is targeting the party as it believes that targeting Modi would fetch more votes in the State. The TDP seems to believe that criticising Modi is what the Telugu people like now and would rally for. It is a fact that special category status demand is seen as life line by the people. The TDP and the BJP have made people to believe that the development is possible only through special category status. However the same parties have gone back on the life line issue in the last four years while the Congress and the YSR Congress continued to highlight it.
The special category status had finally become the core issue with majority people asking for it and the TDP and BJP going back on it. It had become a sentimental issue and the sentiments are so strong that the TDP too had to come back batting for the special category status. The sentiment is so strong that it had turned the allies – BJP and TDP – into foes. The TDP believes that the special category status demand and attack on BJP would fetch more votes for the party and that is the reason why the TDP is targeting the BJP more than the local rivals.
Interestingly, the BJP too is taking TDP on the same lines and targeting the party. BJP chief Amit Shah found some time to attack the TDP and Chandrababu Naidu. His party leadership in the State too is leaving no stone unturned to attack the TDP.
With the TDP and BJP locking horns, the YSR Congress and Jana Sena have their ways into the people. The leaders of the two parties are currently on the roads now, both targeting the TDP and Chandrababu Naidu. The TDP chief is not able to counter the attack from these two leaders as he and his party leaders are focusing attack on the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Having set to play key role in the national politics only to hit at Narendra Modi, the TDP chief is likely to go harder against the BJP, sparing the YSR Congress and Jana Sena. It is to be seen how this strategy would help him retain the power in the 2019 elections.
