For the first time in its 32-year-old history, Telugu Desam legislature Party was meeting outside Hyderabad to elect party president N Chandrababu Naidu as its leader paving the way for his swearing-in as the Chief Minister of residuary State of Andhra Pradesh.
“TDP legislators, who assembled in Tirupati, tonight unanimously elected Naidu as the legislature party leader,” according to an announcement made by the party here.
Party workers had decorated the main thoroughfare and the surroundings of Sri Venkateshwara University, the venue of the meeting, with party flags, festoons, banners and cutouts of Naidu and party founder NT Rama Rao.
TDlP meeting will be held in the Senate Hall of the University amid tight security. Party MlAs and MlCs have already gathered in the town.
Party sources said that senior party leader KE Krishnamurthy will propose the name of Naidu as the leader of TDlP and his election will be announced at 8.51 pm, the time fixed by the astrologers as auspicious.
Since 1995, when Naidu had taken over the leadership of the party and the Government after a coup against NTR, has been elected as the TDlP leader five times.
Naidu, who led the TDP back to power after 10 years in the recent polls, will be sworn-in as the first Chief Minister of post bifurcation Andhra Pradesh on June 8 in Guntur. Round-the-clock work was going on at a sprawling ground near Acharya Nagarjuna University.
A special helipad was also being built near the venue to enable the VIPs to land there. Naidu has invited PM Narendra Modi and at least 11 non Congress Chief Ministers from across the country.