Lost lament

Chandrababu Naidu’s allegations of personal attacks by the YSRCP are unlikely to translate into political gains

- RAHUL DEVULAPALLI

THE SECOND DAY of the winter session of the Andhra Pradesh assembly, on November 19, ended on a rather stormy note as leader of the opposition N. Chandrababu Naidu staged a walkout; he later vowed that he would not return to the assembly till he was voted back to power. A few hours later, the 15 reporters who gathered at the Telugu Desam Party’s office expected to hear him criticise the government. What happened though left them utterly surprised.

A few minutes into his address, the TDP supremo started sobbing. Senior journalists who had been tracking the TDP closely had never seen him emotional, let alone in tears. “They (the YSR Congress Party) are resorting to character assassination of my wife,” Naidu told the media moments after his breakdown. TDP media coordinator Prakash Reddy, who has been with the party since its inception, said he cried all day after seeing his leader so hurt.

The gloves are off in Andhra Pradesh, where the political rivalry between the ruling YSRCP and the TDP is getting ugly and personal. After Naidu’s breakdown, curiosity peaked with regard to what exactly happened on the floor of the house. The YSRCP leaders quickly denied targeting Naidu’s wife, Nara Bhuvaneswari, daughter of the legendary Telugu actor and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister N.T. Rama Rao. They cited official records which did not show anything that corroborated Naidu’s claims.