Amaravati: TDP president and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu was unanimously elected as the leader of the Telugu Desam Legislature Party (TDLP) here on Wednesday.
A meeting of the TDLP, attended by the newly-elected MLAs and MPs of the party, was held at Naidu’s residence. The TDP, which ruled the state from June 2014, faced a rout at the hands of the YSR Congress Party in the just-concluded election to the state Assembly, winning just 23 of the 175 seats.
In the Lok Sabha polls too, the Naidu-led party suffered a drubbing, bagging only three of the state’s 28 seats. The TDP chief held a meeting with the 23 newly-elected MLAs and the three MPs, besides senior leaders of the party. Since the election results were declared on May 23, there was speculation in party circles that Naidu would make way for another leader to lead the TDLP. At the TDLP meeting, however, the lawmakers elected him unanimously, according to party sources.
“Only Chandrababu should be the TDLP leader. It gives us a lot of confidence and strength,” senior legislator Gorantla Butchaiah Chowdary said. Another legislator, N China Rajappa, said they had unanimously elected Naidu as their leader once again. He said they had entrusted the choice of selecting the TDLP deputy leaders and the party whip with Naidu. Later, Naidu appointed Galla Jayadev, who was re-elected as the MP from Guntur, as the leader of the Telugu Desam Parliamentary Party.
Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu, who was also re-elected from Srikakulam, would be the party’s leader in the Lok Sabha, while former Union minister Y Satyanarayana Chowdary would be the party leader in the Rajya Sabha. The TDP’s strength in the Lok Sabha has fallen from 15 to three, while in the Rajya Sabha, the party has six members (five from Andhra Pradesh and one from Telangana).
Naidu has said his party will play the role of a constructive opposition and extend co-operation to the new YSRCP government in Andhra Pradesh.