NDA will be back: Naidu

Ruling out the possibility of TDP supporting the third front, Naidu said Vajpayee would be next PM.

Telugu Desam leader and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday predicted that the NDA will once again form the government at the Centre. Ruling out the possibility of his party supporting the third front, he said AB Vajpayee would be the next PM.

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Asked if he was in touch with Left Front leaders or others like Sharad Pawar, Mulayam Singh and Jayalalitha, he said no contacts had been made by him.

Naidu, who was here on a day's visit for a social engagement, did not meet any political leaders.

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Describing the exit polls as "not exact polls", he said "their sample size has been so small. I do not think they are correct. The TDP will form the government in Andhra comfortably”.

Naidu said: “After the last assembly elections, the exit polls went wrong for Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. The exit polls have contributed in creating confusion and nothing more. Some of these polls also deliberately take sides.”

Asked whether the TDP's secular image had been dented by the fact that Narendra Modi was going to campaign for the BJP, he said, "The TDP is a secular party and our secular credentials are intact."

Criticising the EC, he said: “Such prolonged elections together with misleading exit polls have a terrible impact on our overall economy. It is 45 days of confusion for no rhyme or reason.”

Did he think that Shining India was merely a campaign and had failed to touch a chord somewhere? "Look at India in the pre-1991 stage and in the post-1991 stage. The country has marched ahead in every field. Look at roads, the telecom sector. A lot of progress has been made," the CM said.

Asked what role he saw for himself, particularly in view of his high-profile position in the last few years, Naidu said: "The same as before. Things are not going to change."