‘Will take a call on tie-upwith JSP when time comes’

“We will cross the bridge when we come to it,” said BJP MLC Somu Veerraju, reacting cautiously to speculation over the party entering into an alliance with the Jana Sena Party in the 2019 elections.

Addressing the media here on Friday, Mr. Veerraju said the BJP would contest all the 175 Assembly seats on the directions of party president Amit Shah and party State affairs in-charge Ram Madhav. He said the leadership would take a decision on tie-ups when the time comes.

The MLC said he had advised JSP chief Pawan Kalyan during the 2014 elections not to go with the TDP, but the latter felt N. Chandrababu Naidu could rule the State well with his administrative capabilities.

“After seeing the real face of Mr. Naidu, Mr. Pawan has started highlighting genuine issues and the failings of the government,” Mr. Veerraju said. People would not believe the Jana Sena leader if he did not tell the truth even after four years.

‘Vital sectors neglected’

The BJP leader said he would launch an aggressive campaign against TDP’s misrule and corruption from Rajamahendravaram. He lashed out at the State government, saying that it had neglected vital sectors such as education, health and infrastructure.

He alleged that there was large-scale corruption in the distribution of eggs to schoolchildren on which government is spending ₹45 crore every month. The Chief Minister was claiming that the government had planted 50 crore saplings in the State and asked whether at least 10 % of them had survived. The TDP government was misusing Sarva Siksha Abhiyan funds and claiming ₹250 crore for whitewashing school buildings.

“The government is not functioning in the State. The Chief Minister is concentrating only on political campaigns such as ‘Dharma Porata Deekha’ and ‘Nava Nirmana Deekha,’ leaving the people in the lurch,” Mr. Veerraju alleged.