Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, June 4: Unlike in Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim where the ruling parties returned with bigger mandates in the Assembly elections, two other state assemblies where elections were held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polling are set to change hands and in both the states the BJP has recorded resounding success.
In Andhra Pradesh, the BJP’s newest ally the Telegu Desam Party (TDP) has swept the elections totally decimating the incumbent ruling party YSRCP while in Odisha the BJP is all set to form the government for the first time having ousted the M Naveen Patnaik’s Biju Janata Dal from power.
In Andhra Pradesh, the TDP has won or are comfortably leading on 163 seats in the 175-member state Assembly reducing the ruling YSRCP to mere 12 seats, while in Odisha, the BJP has crossed the majority mark and has won or are leading in 78 seats in the 147-member House with the BJD reduced to 51 seats and the Congress winning or leading in 14 seats. Mr Patnaik himself was defeated in one constituency but was leading in another.
In the counting of votes taken up for Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim on Sunday, the BJP and its allies had retained to power with 51 seats in the 60-member Assembly while in Sikkim the ruling SKM retained power winning 31 seats in the 32-member Assembly. In the Lok Sabha elections too, the performance of the parties in the four states were similar to the outcome in the Assembly elections.
In 2019 state Assembly elections, the TDP, which was the incumbent party, managed to win only 23 seats while its ally Janasena had won only one.
Set to form the government in Andhra Pradesh, TDP leader Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday said the people of Andhra Pradesh have reposed their faith in his party and the ruling National Democratic Alliance. Congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said the big wins in Lok Sabha as well as assembly elections was a “reflection of their trust in our alliance.”
Thank you, @narendramodi Ji! On behalf of the people of Andhra Pradesh, I congratulate you on the NDA’s victory in the Lok Sabha and Andhra Pradesh Assembly Elections. Our people of Andhra Pradesh have blessed us with a remarkable mandate. This mandate is a reflection of their trust in our alliance and its vision for the state. Together with our people, we shall rebuild Andhra Pradesh and restore its glory,” he said on X, replying to the prime minister’s congratulatory message to him and Pawan Kalyan-led Janasena for an “emphatic” victory in their state.
“Andhra Pradesh has given an exceptional mandate to NDA! I thank the people of the state for their blessings. I congratulate @ncbn Garu, @PawanKalyan Garu and the Karyakartas of @JaiTDP, @JanaSenaParty and @BJP4Andhra for this emphatic victory. We will work for the all-round progress of AP and ensure the state prospers in the times to come,” Prime Minister Modi said on X.
This comes after the PM Modi and union home minister Amit Shah dialled the former chief minister, who scripted the NDA’s victory in the southern state. According to the latest trends, the ruling alliance is leading on 292 seats overall. Andhra Pradesh is all set to welcome back Naidu, as his party is headed towards forming the government as well while national trends show they are leading on 22 out of a total of 25 Lok Sabha seats. State BJP in-charge Siddharth Nath Singh also met and congratulated the TDP leader on his resounding lead in the elections.
Naidu has staged an impressive comeback after his decision to break away from the NDA and join the UPA ahead of the 2019 general elections proved costly. This time, he did not repeat that mistake. He has single-handedly driven his party as well as the NDA in the assembly as well as Lok Sabha polls.
