Congress leader and former Union Minister V. Kishore Chandra Deo joined the TDP in the presence of national president and Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu in the CM’s residence at Undavalli near here on Sunday.

His supporters from the Araku Lok Sabha constituency turned up in good numbers at the venue. Welcoming them into the party fold, Mr. Naidu said the TDP would become stronger in north coastal Andhra with the entry of Mr. Deo.

The former Union Tribal Affairs Minister touched upon the bauxite mining, a sensitive issue in the Visakhapatnam Agency area where the tribals and the Opposition parties had been opposing it.

“The bauxite mining licence was not cancelled though I opposed it tooth and nail. The Congress was in power at both the State and the Centre then. The credit of cancelling the licence goes to Mr. Naidu,” Mr. Kishore Chandra Deo said.

‘YSR responsible’

“The people are not aware of the facts behind the bauxite mining. It is unfortunate a sitting MLA and an ex-MLA were killed.” Mr. Naidu said the mining was against the sentiments and rights of the tribals. YSR was responsible for it and the turmoil. Justice was done to the tribals during the TDP government. Mr. Deo strove to stop it, he said.

Mines and Geology Minister Sujay Krishna Ranga Rao said Mr. Deo was an ‘ajatasatru’ (one who has no foes), had rich political experience and played key role in national politics.

Mr. Deo represented the Araku (ST) constituency from 2009-2014. He had been elected to the Lok Sabha five times and also held one term in the Rajya Sabha. At present, the Araku constituency is represented by Kothapalli Geeta, who won the 2014 election on the YSR Congress ticket. She floated her own party Jana Jagruti Party in the recent past.