The Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Jana Sena Party (JSP) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have arrived at a consensus on seat-sharing for the forthcoming elections in the State. The TDP and JSP have agreed to allocate six Lok Sabha and 10 Assembly constituencies to the BJP, according to a joint statement issued late on Monday night.
The JSP will contest from two Lok Sabha and 21 Assembly constituencies, while the TDP would field its candidates in 17 Lok Sabha and 144 Assembly constituencies.
A high-level meeting was held in Amaravati on Monday, which was attended by Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekawat, BJP national vice-president Baijayant Panda, TDP national president N. Chandrababu Naidu, and JSP president Pawan Kalyan. Later, in a joint statement, they said that the names of the constituencies will be announced subsequently by the respective parties.
“We are driven by a desire to fulfil the expectations of the people of Andhra Pradesh. We are confident that the people of Andhra Pradesh will bless the NDA alliance partners with an opportunity to serve them to the best of our capabilities,” the statement said.
All the parties agreed to make the interests of the State and its future the utmost priority and the key driving factor behind the seat-sharing discussions. “We hope this will lay the foundation for a bright and progressive future,” the statement said.
Mr. Naidu, turning to X on Monday, said that the BJP, TDP and JSP had forged a formidable seat-sharing formula. “With this significant step, the people of Andhra Pradesh now stand on the threshold of reclaiming our State and paving the way for a brighter future. I humbly call upon my people of Andhra Pradesh to shower their blessings upon this alliance, and grant us a historic mandate to serve them,” he said.
