When Congress senior leader Oomen Chandy visited AP recently, he made a significant remark about Megastar Chiranjeevi. He said Chiru was no longer in the Congress Party. Though PCC chief Sake Shailajanath contradicted this and said that Chiru was still very much with the Congress, Chandy did not retract his words nor did he issue a clarification.

It turns out that Oomen Chandy has some inside information about Chiru’s latest moves.

Of late, top BJP leaders from Delhi are said to be in touch with Chiru. They have been reportedly requesting Chiru to convince Pawan Kalyan to merge his party into the BJP. In return, Pawan Kalyan would be made the state BJP chief and the party will work under him for the 2024 elections. They want Chiru to play the mediator. Chiranjeevi is said to be still in two minds about the proposal. He is said to have discussed the proposal with his close associates and the family members.

Meanwhile, Pawan Kalyan himself is in two minds, whether to join hands with the TDP or merge with the BJP. He is clear that he will have to play a key role in 2024 elections, but whether he should form an alliance with TDP or merge into the BJP is the question before him. Chiru has the experience of negotiating a merger. He had merged his Praja Rajyam Party into the Congress and got ministries for himself and his key colleagues like Ganta Srinivasa Rao and Kanna Babu. So, the BjP wants him to facilitate Pawan’s merger into the BJP.

But those in the know say that Pawan is a tougher customer to deal with compared to Chiru. His conditions would be harder too. Sources say he might demand a position in the Central Government if the BJP-Jana Sena fails to dislodge YS Jagan Mohan Reddy in 2024. He might even ask for the political rehabilitation of his brother Chiru too. It is the inside knowledge of these developments that made Oomen Chandy to say that Chiru is not in the Congress.