Telugu Desam Party chief N Chandrababu Naidu’s presence at Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s swearing-in ceremony in Bhopal on Saturday has triggered another round of speculation about the possibilities of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister’s reunion with the BJP.
Though Naidu and NDA’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi shared dais at an apolitical function in Delhi recently, it was for the first time that the TDP chief mingled with BJP leaders at a political function.
Naidu was also expected at Vasundhara Raje’s swearing-in ceremony in Jaipur on Friday, but cancelled his visit at the last moment to attend the session of Andhra Pradesh Assembly. “There are no permanent enemies in politics. Things keep changing every day,” a BJP leader said.
In Bhopal, Naidu shared dais with BJP leaders and joined hands with them to greet the strong crowd at Jamboori Maidan where Chouhan took oath of the office of Chief Minister. On stage, he was continuously engaged in discussion with Modi and BJP general secretary Ananth Kumar. He also exchanged pleasantries with lK Advani and Rajnath Singh and shook hands with others.
Sources claimed Naidu’s reunion with the BJP could see him getting the post of NDA convener. The post, last held by Sharad Yadav, is lying vacant after Janata Dal (United) split with the BJP earlier this year. The name of Shiromani Akali Dal veteran Prakash Singh Badal, Punjab Chief Minister, was also doing the rounds for this assignment.
However, sources claimed, BJP leaders were looking for a younger leader who also has an access to regional parties. “Naidu would be the perfect candidate to shoulder that responsibility. It has been communicated to him that his reunion with the NDA would come with the assignment to further expand the alliance,” BJP sources said.
Naidu was a powerful axis of the NDA between 1998 and 2004. After snapping ties with BJP post 2004 debacle, Naidu had joined the ‘secular’ bandwagon of non-Congress and non-BJP parties, but left little impact. After a poor show in both the Assembly and the lok Sabha election, he was constantly under pressure from party leaders to align with the BJP, again.
Naidu was eyeing a comeback in Andhra Pradesh after Congress plunged into a turmoil following the death of YS Rajasekhara Reddy in September 2009. However, the rise of Reddy’s son Jagan Mohar in Seemandhra region keeps him on tenterhooks.
Naidu had triggered speculations about joining the BJP for the first time a couple of months ago when he told a press conference that he would play an active role in formation of a non-Congress Government in Delhi in 2014.