Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu’s statements hailing the formation of Congress-Janata Dal (S) coalition government in Karnataka has not gone down well with Bharatiya Janata Party.
The saffron party has taken serious exception to Naidu’s criticism that the BJP had sought to murder the democracy by trying to poach the Congress, JD (S) MLAs to retain power.
And as if rubbing salt to the BJP wounds, Naidu has declared that he is going to attend the swearing-in ceremony of JD (S) leader H D Kumaraswamy at Bengaluru in Karnataka on Wednesday.
“It clearly shows the rank opportunism of the TDP president. He does not hesitate to change his stand if it suits his political needs.
After sailing with the BJP all these years, he is now moving towards the Congress party and not hesitating to shake hands with the very party which had been the TDP’s rival since its foundation,” senior BJP leader and party general secretary Suresh Reddy said.
He said if Naidu goes to Kumaraswamy’s swearing-in ceremony, it would mean insulting late N T Rama Rao, the founder of the TDP.
“It will hurt his soul. Naidu has virtually mortgaged the self-respect of Telugus before Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi,” he criticised.
Former Union minister Bandaru Dattatreya also found fault with Naidu for supporting the Congress-JD (S) coalition.
He said Naidu had no moral right to criticise the BJP’s attempt to form a government in Karnataka, it being the single largest party.
He also attacked Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao for secretly supporting the Congress party in the name of his proposed federal front.
“If KCR attends Kumaraswamy’s swearing-in ceremony, it amounts to him backing the Congress-led coalition,” Dattatreya said.
