TDP To Sail With BJP For Now, Demand Special Package

Visibly enraged with the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre for completely ignoring Andhra Pradesh in the Union Budget for 2018-19 and not fulfilling the promises to the truncated state made at the time of bifurcation, Telugu Desam Party supremo and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, who called an emergency meeting of the TDP Parliamentary Board on Sunday, surprisingly abruptly concluded the meeting without taking any major decisions.

Speaking to the media after the meeting, TDP MP and Union minister Sujana Chowdary said that the party had decided to sail with the NDA government for now, but would continue to exert pressure on it for a special package for Andhra Pradesh to meet all the promises made in the AP Reorganization Act of 2014.

He also said that the party would raise the issue in both the Houses of Parliament if necessary.

Chowdary said that Naidu was quite upset with the Centre leaving AP in the lurch, and had called the emergency meeting of the Party Parliamentary Board to discuss the development. The meeting thoroughly discussed the "gross injustice" meted out to Andhra Pradesh in the recent Union Budget, he said.

Chowdary also condemned the reports in a section of the media that Naidu had spoken to the Shiv Sena chief claiming that the NDA government was meting out step-motherly treatment to the non-BJP state governments. He also clarified that the Chief Minister did not speak to BJP president Amit Shah about his grievances.