No more a charmed life

V V Balakrishna
Last Updated : 20 Nov 2011 09:50:06 AM IST

HYDERABAD: At a time when things appeared to be working in his favour, the odds have suddenly stacked up against Telugu Desam Party chief N Chandrababu Naidu. The first blow came from the state High Court, which by acting on the petition of Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy’s mother Vijayamma, ordered a preliminary investigation by the CBI into his wealth.

The Telangana agitation also left Naidu’s edifice’s bruised and battered. The party lost seven of its MLAs, who changed sides to the Telangana Rashtra Samiti. Finally, after the agitation has been called off, Naidu has managed to keep the remaining Telangana MLAs together in the party.

Then there is the Congress as well, which Naidu has to tackle. Congress is not in a mood to concede any political space for the TDP chief though elections are more than two and half years away.  Pradesh Congress Committee president Botcha Satyanarayana does not mince words when he says “We have all the answers to the questions that Naidu might raise in the Assembly if he bids to bring a no-confidence motion against us. We have enough numbers in the Assembly. We are not all worried. Let Naidu say or do whatever he wants. We have an upper hand over him.”

On top of this, Congress is repeatedly taunting Naidu on why he was dragging his feet in facing the recent CBI probe ordered by the state High Court. Botcha makes a scathing remark when he says, “It is an excellent opportunity to tell the people that you are clean. If any allegations are made, a politician should always welcome a probe so that he can emerge unscathed.”

The recent shocks have been debilitating, but Nadiu being a seasoned politician is finding ways to mitigate the rising problems. Naidu in response has filed a petition in the Andhra Pradesh High Court seeking an opportunity to be heard in the case. His contention was that the court before directing the CBI to inquire into his wealth did not ask him to file a counter to Vijayamma's petition.

The TDP believes that the petition of Vijayamma was intended to please the Congress so that Jagan Mohan Reddy could escape from the heat of the CBI investigation. TDP senior leader Yanamala Ramakrishunudu said that the trade off between Jagan Mohan Reddy and the Congress is very evident for any discerning person. In return for toning down the CBI investigation into this riches, Jagan Mohan Reddy, would stop a) attacking Sonia Gandhi, b) help it politically by trying to discredit Naidu through court petitions and c) support the UPA after the general elections in 2014. “Already, Jagan has fulfilled his first two tasks,” Ramakrishnudu explained the deal.

Naidu wants to turn the tables by moving a no confidence motion against the state government in the winter session on its “ineptitude” in addressing the grievances of farmers.