Centre mulling really good gift for Andhra

​New Delhi: The Centre is mulling how to offer "a really good developmental package to AP" as protests start rocking its alliance boat with TDP jumping onto the bandwagon of protests along with the Congress and the YSRCP, over the denial of the Special Category Status.

Sensing political compulsions of its strong ally, TDP, with whom it shares power, at the Centre and in the State, and which too began raising the political heat on Monday, the Centre is reportedly planning to direct the NITI Aayog to speed up its work on the financial package to AP.

It may be recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had directed the NITI Aayog, after a meeting with AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu to "sit with AP officials and draft the package". This has been on the backburner for quite some time now.

As the Lok Sabha was in the midst of the protests on Monday, Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu reportedly met the Prime Minister and suggested to get NITI Aayog speed up the process. Following the meeting, a status report was sought by the PMO from the NITI Aayog, according to official sources.

Earlier, sensing the anger in the public against denial of the Special Status, the TDPP members staged a vociferous protest, hitherto unheard of, both in Lok Sabha and in the premises of Parliament on Monday along with the YSRCP MPs to force the adjournment of the House once during the day.

However, there was little to indicate that the BJP-led NDA Government would relent or concede ground on this demand as "it is bound by the provisions of the 14th Finance Commission though it is willing to extend the hand holding to AP till it shines again in the developmental firmament", the BJP clarified.

As the entire Opposition in AP gears up to enforce a bandh in the State on Tuesday over the issue, the MPs directed by their leaders worked in their own ways to raise the political heat to "appropriate levels".

That the moves were calibrated became known in the distinct styles adopted by the two parties on the floor of the House and outside.

That the TDPP adopted 'Mitra Dharma' was obvious when it preferred to stage a dharna in front of Mahatma Gandhi statue in the premises of Parliament between 10.30 am and 11 am while, in the House, it preferred not to cross the 'Lakshmana Rekha" by entering the well.

It simply held placards but raised high-pitch slogans demanding the Special Status - "most vociferously" compared to their demand in the past - but did not prefer to go to the well of the House to disrupt the proceedings.

The YSRCP had no such niceties and rushed to the well to score over the TDP. The demands of both the parties were almost the same, with the YSRCP MPs' additionally asking the TDPP to come out of the alliance and join hands with them in waging the fight against the reluctant Centre.

Another "propriety" the TDPP stuck to was in keeping their Union Ministers out of the protests.Union Ministers, P Ashok Gajapati Raju and Y S Chowdary, did not deem it "proper" to join the protests either outside the House or in the House.

While both the parties put their "commitment to the people of Andhra Pradesh" thus, on display, the BJP quarters were naturally concerned despite the "strong bond of their alliance".

Sujana Chowdary met Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, it was claimed. The Telugu Desam Party MPs' said they would explore all avenues to exert pressure on the BJP-led NDA Government to fulfill its commitment on this count.

As of now, the BJP leadership is in no worry "as a matured Naidu (Chandrababu) would not take any hasty steps", it feels. BJP's AP President K Haribabu went ahead to hint that this package could be really good enough to silence critics.