Andhra: Pawan Kalyan Announces JSP-TDP Alliance For 2024, Says He Hopes BJP Would Also Join Them

Jana Sena Party (JSP) president Pawan Kalyan today (14 September) announced the formation of an alliance with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) of former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu to fight the 2024 Assembly elections.

He made the announcement after meeting Naidu, who is currently in the Rajahmundry central jail after being arrested for his alleged role in the skill development scam.

Naidu's son Nara Lokesh and TDP's Hindupur MLA, Nandamuri Balakrishna , were seen with him during the announcement.

Speaking about his decision, he said that it was taken for the welfare of the people and that democracy was being threatened by the YSRCP. He said that he was hopeful that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would also join the alliance.

Further, he stated that a JSP-TDP delegation would meet President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in the following days to brief them about the state of affairs in Andhra Pradesh.

Responding to the announcement, the Andhra Pradesh unit of the BJP stated that the alliance with the JSP remains intact and decisions on alliances will be taken by the party's central leadership.

The JSP, which is an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), had been trying to convince the BJP to agree to a tripartite alliance in the state to put up a united front against the YSRCP.

The BJP had however not made its stance clear. Naidu too had met Shah and is learnt to have discussed the matter.

The TDP had left the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in 2018, over the issue of special status to the state.