Why did Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan and BJP AP state president Somu Veerraju meet suddenly in a Vijayawada hotel for well over two hours in a Vijayawada hotel? While both the parties have not come out with any statement, the meeting is quite significant as it has come at a time when the relations between the two parties are developing severe strains and there are reports that the Jana Sena is looking towards the TDP.

If highly placed sources are to be believed, both the parties wanted to show that they are united despite the differences. They also wanted to send a clear message that they may not move closer to the TDP anytime soon. That the meeting was attended by the likes of BJP co-convener Sunil Deodhar, senior leader Daggubati Purandeswari and Jana Sena’s Nadendla Manohar shows that this was no mere courtesy meet. Sources say this was a clear signal that the leaders of the two parties want to stay together and also that there is no immediate chance of an alignment with the TDP as was being speculated in a section of media.

Sources said that any realignment of political forces such as joining hands with the TDP is not going to prove useful at this juncture. The Jana Sena wants to adopt a wait-and-watch approach for some more time. The alignment, if any, would be feasible only in 2023, the Jana Sena thinking heads feel. The BJP and Jana Sena for now have reportedly decided to launch common programmes to counter the YSRCP.

Ever since the Tirupati debacle, distance has grown between the two parties. Both have been organizing programmes separately. Post the recent visit of BJP incharge Shiv Prakash Singh and his stern message to the party leadership, the BJP state president has gone into an active mode again. This meeting is being said to be a part of this new-found activism. What common programmes the two parties would come up with in AP remains to be seen.