An increasingly confident Chandrababu has now begun targeting Chiranjeevi. He criticized Chiranjeevi for projecting Praja Rajyam as an alternative to the Congress. The TDP, Chandrababu reminded Chiranjeevi, has a history for working for the poor, BCs and women. The TDP chief was particularly harsh on Praja Rajyam’s claim that their party would sweep all seats in East and West Godavari districts by a majority of over 20,000 votes. Does that mean, asked Chandrababu, that they will only win those seats and not the rest? “Intlo koorchoni oohaloddhu” was Chandrababu’s sharp reaction to some of Chiranjeevi’s comments.
On his part, the megastar retaliated. He said he believed in the positive power of the ability to dream big. He said a man without a dream was like a sailor without a compass. He (again) referred to Dr. Abdul Kalam’s “dreams that do not let you sleep” quote and advised his cadre to have the strength to believe in their dreams. He urged his followers to use him as an instrument to achieve their goals. The days of change are near he prophesied. Chiranjeevi sounded relaxed and confident. He refused to accept or deny rumors that the Samajwadi Party was ready to join hands with Praja Rajyam for the forthcoming polls. A Praja Rajyam spokesperson said that as of now the party has not taken any stand on alliances.
But Chiranjeevi is making progress on the coalition front. There are strong indications that Jaya Bachan and Jayaprada will be campaigning for Praja Rajyam. The initial call was supposedly made by Amitabh Bachan. Chiranjeevi predictably remained tight lipped on the issue. He also did not make any comments on Chandrababu’s remark that Praja Rajyam has within a span of days changed its stance on SEZs. However the one party which is distancing itself from trading criticisms and counter criticisms is the Congress. It is now basking in the successful inclusion of India into the nuclear club. Dr. Manmohan Singh’s victory in Delhi couldn’t have happened at a better time.
The fertilizer shortage was off the front pages of almost all newspapers in the state. In accepting to and addressing the shortage issue, Raghuveera Reddy (Minister for agriculture) has managed to deflect most of the heat off the party. The CM, Dr. YSR has meanwhile assured that the Congress will continue free supply of power for the next 5 years as well. The situation in the villages, according to Dr.YSR has definitely improved during the Congress government’s rule. His statement received support from K. Narayana of CPI. The communist veteran acknowledged that the Congress has made substantial inroads into the rural voter base. Narayana observed that the subsidy and welfare programs initiated by the Congress have stopped economic distress and resultant migration in the villages. In the same breath he added that corruption had increased manifold and was hurting economic growth.
K.Narayana also stated that the alliance between CPM and TDP was only a creation of the media. He questioned the veracity of such reports and reminded the public that leaders from either side have not made any official announcement on the alliance. When questioned on the alliance with Chiranjeevi, he said his party was waiting for Chiranjeevi to come up with the Praja Rajyam’s manifesto. On the TDP chances, he openly stated that Chandrababu had lost the confidence of the voter. K.Narayana drove home some bitter truths about impact of star power in politics. He reminded the result of Aswini Dutt’s contest in the last election, the one where Aswini Dutt roped in Chiranjeevi for the campaign. Back then, the megastar had asked his fans to supportAswini Dutt. Aswini Dutt however lost the election, said Narayana. As the polls are nearing Chiranjeevi is now beginning to feel the heat.
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