The Congress is worried about the BJP making inroads in Seemandhra with the tactical alliance with the TDP fearing that the saffron party could get mileage of the anti-Congress sentiments for splitting Andhra Pradesh.
The Congress may be in power in Karnataka and Kerala but has been failing to recover in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.
Andhra was the only state that had given strength to the Congress in the 2004 and the 2009 Lok Sabha and the state Assembly polls. The BJP could emerge as a gainer in Seemandhra and Telangana states in the long run. BJP pointman Prakash Javadekar played a key role in stitching up alliance with the TDP despite his party’s stand in favour of a Telangana state. According to reports, the Congress is not getting its due for creating Telangana, contrary to the calculation that it will be sweep in its favour.
This is because the TRS is taking a credit of creating the new state and the BJP for backing it in the state and the two Houses of Parliament. The TRS’s argument has been that the Congress was compelled to create the state because of our agitation on Telangana.
The saffron party stands to gain in Seemandhra and has nothing to lose in Telangana. Mr Javadekar, a hardcore leader who spent about four decades in the party and the Sangh Parivar, stayed in Andhra Pradesh for a month and thus delivered.
The TDP had wanted the alliance with the BJP to be confined in Telangana with a calculation this would help it winning elections but the BJP had played its cards well in both the Telangana and Seemandhra.
On the Congress’ performance in Seemandhra and Telangana, the Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Wednesday said, “We hope to form the government in Telangana, but we are not too hopeful in Seemandhra.”
Now, the BJP’s “goodwill” in Telangana will remain intact despite whether it emerges as a player there but it will gain ground in Seemandhra due to the alliance with the TDP.