With just a few hours left for the announcement of results of the Karnataka assembly elections, leaders of two major national parties – the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party are keeping their fingers crossed and are obviously tense over the poll outcome.
But more than anybody else, it is Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu who is undergoing a lot of tension.
For the outcome of the result in Karnataka assembly elections will also change his fate in the coming days.
If the BJP wins the Karnataka elections, the party leadership would get a new strength and vigour in the south and it would turn its attention on capturing the other southern states as well.
Already, it has brought Tamil Nadu under its control by reining in AIADMK and is silently spreading in Kerala. If Karnataka comes under its kitty, it would definitely shift its focus on Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
More than that, Naidu is worried that the BJP may begin its aggressive attack on him.
While it would create problems for the state by stalling funds to various projects by raising queries on the utilisation of earlier funds, the BJP leadership might also personally target the TDP chief by instigating the Central investigation agencies to launch a probe into his alleged acts of omission and commission.
It was already indicated by BJP spokesman and MP G V L Narasimha Rao the other day when he said bad days are ahead for Naidu after May 15.
On the other hand, if the BJP fails to come to power in Karnataka, it would go on the back foot at least for now and shift its focus on consolidating the vote bank in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, which would go to polls shortly.
“Instead of daring to launch a direct witch-hunting of Naidu, the BJP might, however, make use of the Opposition parties to weaken the TDP,” a party source said.
