VIJAYAWADA: Giving rise to speculation that he may shift loyalties, Gannavaram TDP MLA Vallabhaneni Vamsi on Friday met Chief Minister and YSRC chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy at the latter’s camp office in Tadepalli. It is expected that the MLA will join the ruling YSRC after Deepavali.
As Jagan had already announced he would not encourage defections like the previous TDP regime and that any elected representative who want to change loyalties have to resign first, Vamsi reportedly agreed to resign as MLA and contest on YSRC ticket in the by-election.
Ministers Perni Venkataramaiah (Nani) and Kodali Sri Venkateswara Rao were present at the meeting, which went on for nearly 30 minutes. It is learnt that Jagan agreed to Vamsi joining the party, but with a rider that he had to resign from the MLA post.
The MLA is likely to make a formal announcement after Deepavali, sources said. Of late, Vamsi has been distancing himself from the party activities. He did not participate in the State-wide protests by the TDP against sand scarcity. On the other hand, the TDP leaders said it will comment on Vamsi’s meeting with Jagan only after the MLA announces his stand openly.
Meanwhile, YSRC Gannavaram in-charge Yarlagadda Venkat Rao, who lost to Vamsi in the 2019 elections, said he is not aware of the development and refused to comment.
Hours before meeting Jagan, the TDP MLA met BJP Rajya Sabha MP Sujana Chowdary, who was in Vijayawada as part of the party’s Gandhi Sankalp Yatra.
Vamsi’s meeting with Sujana raised speculation that the MLA is moving towards the saffron party. Speaking to the media later, Sujana said regional parties will wean away by 2024 elections and more TDP leaders will join the BJP in the coming days. He, however, claimed no political issue came up for discussion during his meeting with Vamsi.
In another related political development, Chirala TDP MLA Karanam Balaram had a luncheon meeting with Sujana in Ongole. There is speculation that Balaram will shift loyalties to BJP, but both the leaders denied it. “We are friends. It is only a courtesy call,” Sujana, who joined the BJP after the Assembly elections, said.
Karanam Balaram too reiterated the same. “I don’t think there is a need to shift loyalties. We both met after a long gap and we discussed only family issues, not politics,’’ Balaram clarified. Sujana, however, reiterated in Ongole that more leaders from other parties will join the BJP. “There is no political future for regional parties. As a national party, the BJP stands for nationalism and its clean image will facilitate a bright political future for it in AP,’’ he said. “Already many leaders from various parties, including TDP, approached us,” the MP claimed.