TDP’s Rath enters Chiranjeevi’s den

The Telugu Desam supremo, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu’s Mee Kosam yatra entered megastar Chiranjeevi’s bastion on Monday. Mr Naidu, who is on 150-day long state-wide tour, is now covering the coastal Andhra region. He has already completed 43 days of his five-month long journey. On Monday night his political rath made its way into West Godavari district, which is Chiranjeevi’s home district. The megastar hails from Mogalthur in West Godavari.

As Mr Naidu is going to tour extensively in the west and east Godavari districts for eight days, his party workers are eagerly awaiting people’s response to the rath yatra in the backdrop of the actor’s plans to float a political party in the next couple of months. These two districts are believed to be the strongholds of the matinee idol as people belonging to his social group are in large numbers.

Incidentally, the TD too has a strong following in both the districts. But the megastar’s plans to launch a political outfit are already creating tremors among the TD workers in Konaseema region of east Godavari district. The former minister, Mr Kotagiri Vidyadhara Rao, who represented TD from Chintalapudi constituency in West Godavari before his expulsion from the party, is adopting a soft approach towards Chiranjeevi.

TD East Godavari wing president, Mr Jyothula Nehru, too left the party to join hands with Chiru. There are rumours in Telugu Desam circles that as soon as the megastar floats his party there might be a larger impact on the TD cadre in the Godavari districts. But the resurgence of the TD in the just-concluded by-elections has given fresh political energy to the party high command and the cadres. At this juncture party senior leaders feel that Chiranjeevi’s yet-to-be launched party may not have any influence on the electoral prospects of Telugu Desam.