VIJAYAWADA: BJP State president D Purandeswari rushed to Delhi on Tuesday to hold talks with the party high command on finalising the seats and candidates that the party would contest in the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.
Sources said that apart from selecting the candidates, the main task would be to finalise the seats the party would contest as the party leaders are unhappy with the Lok Sabha and Assembly seats allotted to the saffron party by the TDP.
Recently, several senior party leaders shot off a letter to the party national leadership on how leaders who joined from the TDP were being given priority in allotting seats, and also the TDP offering them seats that it was unsure of winning. Amidst this, Purandeswari left for Delhi.
Though the BJP managed to get more seats than what were offered earlier, the leaders are of the view that the allocation of seats was not going as per their choice. Sources said that the party was offered seats like Paderu and Adoni where the BJP does not have a strong leader. The TDP is also unsure of winning these seats and that was why the yellow party had allotted them to the BJP, a party leader said.
The BJP wanted to contest from Araku Assembly seat, where it had prepared ground for itself, but it was reportedly offered Paderu. The other Assembly seats that it wanted to contest was Rajahmundry City which it had won in 2014. The TDP, however, is reluctant to give the seat.
Similarly, the BJP opted for contesting Madanapalle, Srikalahasti and Kadiri seats in the Rayalaseema region but the it reportedly did not get them, sources said.
It is said that the party was offered Adoni Assembly seat in Kurnool district.
‘BJP leaders not happy with seat allotment’
“The party leaders are not happy with the seats allotted to them. They are not ready to help the alliance candidates in other seats, if we are not given seats that we can win,’’ a senior leader said.
The party is hopeful that the BJP top brass might convince the TDP leadership to allocate seats where the party can put up a fight. A decision is likely to be taken on Wednesday, sources added.