Perhaps, for the first time since the inception of Telugu Desam Party in 1982, its party president is going to have a one-on-one meeting the president of the Congress party, for political discussions.
Though in the past TDP founder-president late N T Rama Rao had meetings with Congress presidents Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and P V Narasimha Rao, it was purely for official purposes, as NTR was the chief minister and the Congress presidents were in the Prime Minister positions.
Even present TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu, during his tenure as the chief minister of AP in 1996, might have met Congress Sonia Gandhi during the formation of United Front government, it was in the capacity of UF convenor and he was accompanied by the other UF leaders.
But now, Naidu is meeting Rahul Gandhi purely for political purposes – to consolidate all the anti-BJP parties for the formation of a grand alliance.
It is rather disgrace to the TDP as the fundamental principle on which the party was founded was anti-Congressism.
NTR founded the party only to put an end to the Congress party in the country, as the latter had humiliated the Telugu self-respect.
By joining hands with Rahul Gandhi now, the TDP has lost its identity and the basic character. Naturally, Naidu’s opponents allege that he was mortgaging the self-respect of the Telugus before Delhi.
“The present TDP is not Nandamuri TDP (founded by Nandamuri Taraka Ramarao-NTR), but it is Nara's TDP,” Telangana BJP leader G Kishan Reddy said.
He said that NTR fans should ask the TDP leadership, how it has allied with Congress, which means pledging self-respect of Andhra people at the feet of Congress party.
He alleged that Chandrababu Naidu is running politics with only aim of coming back to power in Andhra.
