As Pawan exerts authority, friction mars TDP-Jana Sena ties in Andhra

An unexpected tweet from a Jana Sena Party (JSP) leader which said that Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan would be made chief minister of Andhra Pradesh in a few months has created ripples in the Telugu Desam Party (TDP).

Dr Sampath Nayak, a JSP leader from Telangana, attributed the contents of his post on X to reliable sources in New Delhi. Although one can question its veracity, the tweet was meant to counter the ongoing campaign in the TDP that Nara Lokesh, son of chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and the IT and education minister, be appointed the deputy chief minister.

A not-so-silent feud

The carefully crafted campaign first began on social media. Later, TDP politburo member R Srinivas Reddy gave legitimacy to the demand.

Participating in the NTR's death anniversary on January 18 at Mydukur, Reddy urged Naidu, who was also present in the meeting, to elevate Nara Lokesh as deputy chief minister.

Also read: Chandrababu Naidu should lead Andhra for another decade: Pawan Kalyan

This set the ball in motion much to the discomfiture of Jana Sena leaders. Taking Naidu’s presence at Mydukur as silent approval, many TDP MLAs endorsed the proposal.

Minister escalates row

A day later, sensing that the campaign might rub the JSP on the wrong side, the TDP asked the leaders not to make such demands.

Nevertheless, state Food Processing Minister TG Bharat, while addressing Telugu industrialists in Davaos, Switzerland, in the presence of Chief Minister Naidu, again raised the subject and announced that Nara Lokesh would be the next chief minister whether one likes it or not.

Appearing amid a flurry of TDP statements, Sampath Naik’s tweet is naturally seen as a sign of pent-up anger in the Jana Sena.

Caste factor

The TDP and JSP, representing two influential castes Kamma and Kapu respectively, are reluctant allies. Kapus’ collective desire is to see a man from their caste as the chief minister – a dream until now.

Kapu youths make their impatience apparent by raising ‘CM Zindabad’ slogan whenever a Kapu leader appears promising. They do not want their caste to serve the interest of other parties, especially the TDP. Still, JSP allied with the TDP as the party felt that it had not been taken seriously by the voters.

Also read: Why Pawan Kalyan was most-googled Indian celebrity worldwide this year

Pawan and Kapus

When the TDP-JSP-BJP alliance won the 2024 Assembly elections, Kapus felt that their leader Pawan Kalyan was inching towards their goal. They hope that in the 2029 election, Naidu, now 75, will be around 80 and might opt out of active politics. They think that Pawan Kalyan will be a natural choice for the post of chief minister and the BJP will extend support. There is no space for Nara Lokesh, Naidu’s son and heir apparent, in this scheme of things.

Pawan’s ambition to emerge as an independent leader and Number 2 in the NDA government by taking his own stand on issues might have irked Nara Lokesh supporters, who think Lokesh should be the second in command.

Controversial statements

On many occasions, Pawan, in spite of being a deputy chief minister, created awkward moments for the government. He threatened to remove home minister V Anita for the rise in crimes against women and deteriorating law and order.

On the Tirumala Laddu adulteration controversy, Pawan observed a 11-day penance and gave it a Hindutva colour. On the Tirupati stampede issue he demanded an apology from TTD chairman BR Naidu. Similarly, he embarrassed the government on the alleged PDS rice smuggling from the Kakinada Port as well by ordering the seizure of a ship.

“As a lone deputy chief minister, Pawan started eclipsing Nara Lokesh. Peeved, Lokesh fans in the government started pressurizing Naidu to make him deputy chief minister as a counter to Pawan Kalyan,” said Tulasi Reddy, the Andhra Pradesh Congress working president.

Also read: Pawan 'model': 'To survive, Vijay may have to align with parties he opposes now'

Congress warns of split

In Reddy’s view, differences are bound to crop up between the TDP and JSP as Pawan wants a sort of watchdog control over the government.

“The two parties joined hands only to defeat YS Jagan Mohan Reddy’s government. Since Jagan is no longer a problem, their natural colours have started appearing. With 130 seats, the TDP wants a dominating presence in the government. The JSP with 21 seats wants to contain it with Pawan’s purported stand against corruption and poor governance. They are bound to fall apart,” said Reddy, a former Rajya Sabha member.

‘Only one Deputy CM’

But a section of TDP leaders opine that supporters of Lokesh are harming the party interests by demanding the deputy chief minister post for him to counter Pawan.

“They need not feel threatened as Pawan has already made it clear on the floor of the House that he wants Naidu to remain the chief minister for the next 10 years. Those batting for Nara Lokesh elevation should not forget that Pawan joined the cabinet on the assurance that there would be only one deputy chief minister,” a former TDP minister told The Federal.

‘Leave it to NDA’

But many TDP leaders have a grouse that as long as Lokesh remains a mere cabinet minister, there will be no check on Pawan. They want Lokesh on an equal footing with Pawan Kalyan in the government.

Officially, the TDP, for the time being, wants to play down the simmering row. It has asked all its leaders to refrain from making statements on appointing Nara Lokesh as deputy chief minister.

“We have a TDP-JSP-BJP coalition government in Andhra Pradesh. Matters related to the government will be taken care of by the NDA. Appointments and elevations in the government are issues that fall in the ambit of NDA. We respect NDA decisions,” said Somisetty Venkateswarlu, the TDP General secretary.