TDP's Nara Lokesh likely to launch year-long Padayatra on Gandhi Jayanti

VIJAYAWADA: After the successful conduct of Mahanadu, TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu and general secretary Nara Lokesh have planned to rejuvenate the party cadre by hitting roads.

According to TDP sources, Lokesh is likely to take out a year-long Padayatra from Gandhi Jayanti  (October 2). During an informal interaction with mediapersons on the sidelines of Mahanadu, Lokesh said he is ready to undertake Padayatra or any other programme as directed by the party leadership. 

Citing it, some TDP leaders are of the view that the Padayatra will come in handy for the party to strengthen its base at the grass root level, besides helping Lokesh emerge as a strong leader. Though Lokesh is being considered next to Naidu in the party and he is playing a key role in the party affairs, he has not taken up any massive programme to reach out to people.

Lokesh undertook several public interaction programmes like visiting the flood affected areas and toured several districts to take up party programmes and also visited villages in Mangalagiri constituency, from where he contested unsuccessfully in 2019 elections. "Hence, there is a need for Lokesh to take up a massive public interaction programme to prove himself as the future chief of the TDP," a party leader said.

Recalling that Naidu undertook a Padayatra from Hindupur on October 2, 2012, party sources are of the opinion that Lokesh in all likelihood will also launch the walkathon on the same day from the same town.

Meanwhile, Naidu, who has already announced his plan to visit two districts every month to interact with TDP leaders and cadres as part of the year-long birth anniversary celebrations of TDP founder NT Rama Rao,  is expected to take up a bus yatra to cover the whole State after Lokesh starts his padayatra, the sources added.

Addressing a teleconference with party leaders, Naidu asserted that the YSRC had turned into a 'gone case' because of the three-year atrocious rule of Jagan Mohan Reddy. He said whenever the election would be held, the State would witness a 'one-sided poll'. The people of the State were seething with anger over the ‘ruthless policies’ of the Jagan Mohan Reddy government, he said.

The TDP chief said he had never seen before a government like the YSRC, which was facing severe public resentment in just three years. Jagan’s inefficient and anarchic rule had made the YSRC thoroughly unpopular. "Its days are over now," he observed.

Naidu directed party leaders to organise 'Badude Badudu' campaign everywhere in the State to highlight the failures of the YSRC government. 

The party membership drive should also be speeded up. Groupism would not be tolerated at any level in the party. Village level leaders should be ever vigilant over deletion of names from the electoral rolls, he cautioned.

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