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'Why doubt': What Chandrababu Naidu said on supporting NDA
Chandrababu Naidu was seen sitting and standing next to Narendra Modi at the NDA meeting where the leaders elected Modi as their leader.
Telugu Desam chief N Chandrababu Naidu said the NDA meeting was good after he along with other NDA leaders elected Narendra Modi as the NDA leader. "How can we contest elections if we are not a part of NDA? We fought this collectively. Why you have that doubt I don't know," 74-year-old Naidu said as he came out of the meeting where he sat next to Narendra Modi. In the first photo of the NDA leaders released after the meeting, Naidu was seen next to Modi.
Out of 25 Lok Sabha seats in Andhra Pradesh, Telugu Desam won 16 seats, BJP 3 and Janasena Party 2 -- thus making NDA shine with 22 seats while YSRCP received only 4 seats in the state. The bigger gain for Naidu is the state election where his party won 135 seats out of 175 and he is on his way to be the next chief minister.
According to media reports, Chandrababu Naidu will bargain hard with the BJP as he emerged as the kingmaker and special status for Andhra Pradesh will be at the top of the chart. Additional funds from the Centre for developing Amaravati as the state capital, and the completion of the Polavaram project are likely to be some of his other demands. Reports said Naidu is likely to bargain for several key portfolios in the cabinet and the Speaker's post.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday shared a 2019 speech of Narendra Modi where Modi criticised Naidu saying that he (Naidu) had lots to hide and hence he did not want to give any account of what he did with the money from the Centre for the development of Andhra Pradesh.
"And today he is begging for Mr Naidu's help to remain in office after the people have rejected him decisively," Jairam ramesh posted.
The Congress leader also shared a 2018 post of Naidu in which Naidu wrote, "BJP govt has let the people of this country down in all possible ways."
Several such old and acrimonious exchanges between Modi and Naidu surfaced after the results were out. In one, Modi was heard saying that Naidu had betrayed his father-in-law (NT Rama Rao).
Naidu and his party TDP exited the NDA in 2018 over special status for Andhra Pradesh which the Centre turned down. A year later, TDP was decimated by the YSRCP and Jagan Mohan Reddy became the chief minister.
