With rumours of more Telugu Desam leaders packing their bags to heads towards film star Chiranjeevi's camp or the ruling Congress party, TDP Chief N Chandrababu Naidu has decided to cut short his Mee Kosam Yatra and return to the base in Hyderabad.
The ruling Congress in Andhra Pradesh on Monday suffered a major blow in the urban civic body polls in the Seemandhra region, where opposition Telugu Desam Party put up a stellar performance, but stole the show in Telangana for whose statehood the party claims credit.
In true filmy style, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah on Thursday offered his seat to Leader of Opposition N Chandrababu Naidu for a week to let the latter resolve the ongoing inter-state dispute over irrigation projects with Maharashtra.
TDP President N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday asked women not to repay loans they secured from Micro-Finance Institutions (MFIs) till the government brought in a regulator to keep a tab on the financing business.
Telugu Desam president N Chandrababu Naidu launched his campaign for the next elections with a slew of populist promises offering goodies to different sections. Addressing a huge public meeting, marking the conclusion of his 117-day-long Mee Kosam Yatra (For You Yatra) at Anantapur on Friday evening, Naidu promised 13-hour-free electricity supply to farmers, against the supply of seven hours now.
'My family members are devotees of Lord Tirumala Venkateswara. I visit the deity before making any major decisions.'
Telugu Desam president president N Chandrababu Naidu has held the Congress responsible for the flood of resignations by the members of Assembly from coastal Andhra and Telangana region.
Political sources say Modi is 'keen' on getting the NCP (SP) over to the Mahayuti to counter Eknath Shinde's 'demands' and to act as a cushion against his present allies, Nitish Kumar and N Chandrababu Naidu, 'in case their relationship became untenable'.
'If the INDIA bloc ever forms the government, they will be more than tempted to use such provisions to bring about regime change in BJP-ruled states.'
Kalyan urged everyone to come together to put an end to the desecration of the 'Sanathana Dharma' (Hinduism) in any form.
Flanked by the Trinamool Congress chief, Naidu attacked the National Democratic Alliance government at the Centre alleging that institutions like the Central Bureau of Investigation, Enforcement Directorate, Income Tax department, Reserve Bank of India and Comptroller Auditor General are under "severe pressure".
UP's representation in the government could diminish, given the BJP's decreased seat count in that state.
The parties also vowed to "jointly and unitedly fight against political vendetta" against former chief ministers and their associates by their political rivals who are now in power.
Telugu Desam Party president and leader of opposition in Andhra Pradesh assembly, N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday sought Prime Minister's direction for Maharashtra and Karnataka governments over the issue of "illegal" construction of barrages across Godavari and Krishna rivers.
'As a seasoned politician I know how to talk and understand the opinion and sentiments (of other political leaders).'
Flaying the United Progressive Alliance government for its 'unilateral' decision on the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, Telugu Desam Party President N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday said the Congress is not in a position to convince its members on the tumultuous issue of "equal justice" for people of Telangana as well as Seemandhra.
The populist promises made by former Andhra Pradesh chief minister and Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu for the forthcoming assembly elections will cost the state exchequer a whopping Rs 5,000 crore.The ruling Congress party has termed Naidu's promises a result of 'unimaginable frustration'. "He is so desperate to come to power that he is ready to make any promise to the people", said Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy.
Chief Minister K Rosaiah, Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu and Praja Rajyam chief Chiranjeevi were among the top leaders who paid homage to late Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy on Friday night. Speaking on the occasion, Rosaiah said, "Reddy had a unique personality. He always kept his word and his leadership qualities made people admire him. No surprise that he never lost an election in his long political career since 1978."
The Telugu Desam Party on Sunday accused the central government of ignoring Andhra Pradesh by doing nothing to prevent Maharashtra from going ahead with the Babhli project despite directives from Supreme Court and Central Water Commission.TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu said the Centre has to 'come into the picture' and direct Maharashtra to stop work at the Babhali barrage in Nanded district. "Chavan is going ahead with the project for his political gains," he alleged.
Telugu Desam Party chief Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday said he will not return to Andhra Pradesh without visiting the controversial Babhli project site, appearing defiant even as Maharashtra government decided to revoke the charges against him.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu constituted his council of ministers on Sunday night, considering their experience and social equations, giving due representation to women as well as backward castes.
The preferred format would be for the top BJP leadership in the government to reach out to the alliance leaders on a case-to-case basis.
N Chandrababu Naidu wanted a judicial probe by a sitting judge into the affairs of Satyam Computer Services, Maytas Infra, Maytas Properties, the 14 companies promoted by Jaganmohan Reddy and also Heritage Foods owned by his (Naidu's) wife and family.
Telugu Desam Party President N Chandrababu Naidu and 74 party legislators, who were arrested by Maharashtra police at Dharmabad on Friday, refused to take bail on Saturday and remained firm on their demand that they be allowed to visit the controversial Babhli irrigation project.
Amid the ongoing row over Tirupati laddus, a purported video of mice on the prasad packets of the Siddhivinayak Temple in Mumbai is making rounds on social media, sparking concerns.
'The question for the TMC is not whether it can hold its bastions, but whether it can expand effectively into regions where the BJP already possesses a good ecosystem.'
While the coalition will not be unstable because of pressures, the effort from partners will be to constantly remind the central government and the BJP how much it is dependent on them.
'Naidu understands electoral calculus, that the regional parties are yet to gain confidence in Rahul as a vote-catcher,' points out R Rajagopalan.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary Prasanna Kumar Mohanty on Thursday briefed new chief minister-to-be, N Chandrababu Naidu, about the ongoing process related to the bifurcation of the state.
TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu consistently emphasises, among others, the issue during his campaign, alleging that the state has been supplying poor quality liquor while profiting immensely from 'inflated' prices, running to thousands of crores of rupees.
Amid concerns among devotees on the quality of ghee used in the famous Tirupati 'laddu prasadam', the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) has said sanctity of the sacred sweetmeat has been restored.
Curtains were wrung down on the seven-year-old case of Maoist attack on the former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu with the additional sessions court in Tirupati indicting four of the 30 accused and awarded them punishment on Friday.
Former Chief Minister and Telugu Desam president N Chandrababu Naidu, who heads four-party Grand Alliance in Andhra Pradesh said with the announcement of election schedule, the countdown has begun for the Congress governments both in New Delhi and Hyderabad.
The Andhra Legislative Assembly witnessed noisy scenes and constant exchange of words between the ruling Congress and the TDP members through the 90-minute reply by the chief minister.
A day after YSR Congress president Y S Jaganmohan Reddy was sent to jail in connection with the disproportionate assets case, leader of opposition in Andhra Pradesh assembly and Telugu Desam president N Chandrababu Naidu went hammers and tongs against the YSR family alleging that they indulged in the biggest corruption in the history of India.
Telugu Desam Party president and leader of opposition in Andhra Pradesh assembly N Chandrababu Naidu and state Communist Party of India secretary K Narayana were taken into preventive custody on Monday along with several leaders of their parties and farmers organisations when they tried to march towards the secretariat to meet Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on the farmers issue.
Billed as the first exercise of its kind in demystifying the process of drawing up Budget, Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday made public the draft Budget for 2003-04 that earmarks over 40 per cent of total allocations to irrigation and power.