Published Aug 08, 2022 | 3:01 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 08, 2022 | 3:51 PM
TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, who was in New Delhi to greet President Droupadi Murmu, also met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 7 August. (Facebook)
The BJP is playing a subtle game in Andhra Pradesh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi appears to be keeping both TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy guessing all the time on whose side he will be when the crunch comes.
Checks and balances, the principle, which was the cornerstone of the Indian Constitution to keep the three organs of the state from becoming dictatorial, was in play in regard to both parties.
A few days ago, Chandrababu Naidu was in Delhi attending the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav national committee meeting, called by Narendra Modi.
After a very long time, Naidu got to shake hands with Modi, apparently much to the chagrin of the YSRC camp. Some bonhomie and light-hearted banter ensued between them. They seem to have forgotten the bitter enmity that raged between them ahead of the 2019 general elections.
As if nothing had happened ever, Modi, with a wide grin on his face, exchanged pleasantries, and Naidu with a radiant face that he puts on whenever he gets to see a leader whose stature is higher than his, appeared to be floating in an ethereal world.
There were reports that Modi had invited Naidu to visit Delhi frequently and meet him, which may have come as music to his ears.
But Modi shaking hands with Naidu is being seen as a tactical move to keep the YSRC from jumping to the conclusion that the BJP will be hopelessly dependent on it, should the result in the next Lok Sabha elections go against the party, in which case it would need his support in Parliament.
As Naidu is a leader who can emerge like a Phoenix from ashes, Modi has not dismissed him altogether. He allowed him to yearn for his friendship for years after he hit a rough patch in politics and then beckoned to him.
As politics is always very dynamic, Modi seemed to have kept Naidu in good humour, should he emerge with a substantial number of Lok Sabha seats in the next election.
The other factor that seems to be working in favour of Naidu is that he does not feel uncomfortable working with BJP.
The TDP supported AB Vajpayee’s government in 1999, and, in 2014, joined NDA and remained part of the central government for a major part of Modi’s tenure before turning against him by stepping out of NDA.
It was said that he took the decision under the impression that the BJP’s days were over and it may come a cropper in the general elections in 2019.
He joined hands with the Congress believing that it was a better bet, but his calculations went upside down both in Andhra Pradesh and at the national level.
Now, neither TDP nor the YSRC is in a position to take any stand against Modi openly. It suits the BJP too, as in states where it does not have any presence, it always tries to make the best of both worlds.
