Andhra Pradesh Congress to go it alone in next elections
Gopi Dara | TNN | Jan 23, 2019, 23:06 IST
Picture for representational purpose onlyVIJAYAWADA: The two-day coordination committee meeting followed by the executive committee meeting of the Andhra Pradesh Congress has finally decided to break its silence on the possible alliance with the TDP in the next elections. The party has decided to go it alone contesting all the 175 Assembly and 25 Lok Sabha seats.
The party seems to have received a green signal from the high command to go ahead to contest all the seats without looking for alliance with the TDP. The Congress leadership in the state was in a dilemma whether to continue the alliance with the TDP in Andhra Pradesh too after its debacle in Telangana, or accept the high command decision.
Similar views were expressed during the first day of the coordination committee meeting here, where the leaders argued for the alliance with the TDP. Some of them even favoured alliance with the YSR Congress and Jana Sena.
However, on the second day, the high command is understood to have sent feelers to AICC general secretary in-charge of AP affairs and Kerala former chief minister Oommen Chandy on the alliance. The party high command had asked the AP leaders to get ready for contest without alliance. "The alliance with the TDP is only for the national interests and not for the state," said APCC president N Raghuveera Reddy and AICC general secretary Oommen Chandy.
At the end of the two-day meeting, the Congress leaders said they would start the prepration of the election from February 1 with focus on the special category status demand.
The leaders said that AICC president Rahul Gandhi had time and again promised the special category status to the state on priority and the task before the Congress was to see that Rahul Gandhi is made the prime minister.
"We are convinced that only Congress can bring special category status to the state. We are also convinced that only Rahul Gandhi can give the special category status and hence the task before us is to see that the Congress wins the election and Rahul becomes the prime minister," asserted Raghuveera Reddy.
The party seems to have received a green signal from the high command to go ahead to contest all the seats without looking for alliance with the TDP. The Congress leadership in the state was in a dilemma whether to continue the alliance with the TDP in Andhra Pradesh too after its debacle in Telangana, or accept the high command decision.
Similar views were expressed during the first day of the coordination committee meeting here, where the leaders argued for the alliance with the TDP. Some of them even favoured alliance with the YSR Congress and Jana Sena.
However, on the second day, the high command is understood to have sent feelers to AICC general secretary in-charge of AP affairs and Kerala former chief minister Oommen Chandy on the alliance. The party high command had asked the AP leaders to get ready for contest without alliance. "The alliance with the TDP is only for the national interests and not for the state," said APCC president N Raghuveera Reddy and AICC general secretary Oommen Chandy.
At the end of the two-day meeting, the Congress leaders said they would start the prepration of the election from February 1 with focus on the special category status demand.
The leaders said that AICC president Rahul Gandhi had time and again promised the special category status to the state on priority and the task before the Congress was to see that Rahul Gandhi is made the prime minister.
"We are convinced that only Congress can bring special category status to the state. We are also convinced that only Rahul Gandhi can give the special category status and hence the task before us is to see that the Congress wins the election and Rahul becomes the prime minister," asserted Raghuveera Reddy.
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