Chandrababu Naidu's allegations of personal attacks may not yield political gains

Difficult days: N. Chandrababu Naidu breaking down at a media conference. Difficult days: N. Chandrababu Naidu breaking down at a media conference.

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.

The YSRCP called Naidu’s breakdown a “well-planned drama”, and accused Naidu of attacking Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s family.

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.

However, a leaked clip showed someone from the YSRCP’s benches in heated exchange with Naidu while the mics were off. The clip was played repeatedly in news channels known to favour the TDP and shared widely on social media. A few weeks ago, rebel TDP MLA Vallabhaneni Vamsi had made offensive remarks about Bhuvaneswari to a private channel. And Naidu’s son, Nara Lokesh, has been body-shamed routinely by his father’s opponents. However, is this enough to break a veteran like Naidu?

The YSRCP called Naidu’s breakdown a “well-planned drama”, and accused Naidu of attacking Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s family members in the assembly on the same day. According to YSRCP leaders, Naidu spoke about Reddy’s uncle, former minister Y.S. Vivekananda Reddy, who was murdered, and his mother Y.S. Vijayamma.

A few weeks back, TDP spokesperson K. Pattabhiram had abused Reddy in front of the cameras. This had led to clashes between the cadre of the two parties. However, the TDP leadership did not condemn the actions of its spokesperson, who was arrested. The developments also opened up old wounds. Actress and senior YSRCP leader Roja came down heavily on Naidu for being a hypocrite. She accused him of instigating his party’s women legislators a few years back to say that she acted in erotic movies, thus damaging her image.

“It is problematic and objectionable to make personal comments like these,” said political analyst and former MLC K. Nageshwar. “There is room for political criticism, but that, too, within boundaries. If anything is spoken about people who are not a part of the house, then it brings down its dignity. This is a dangerous precedent and it has to be stopped by the respective leaders.”

The alleged attack on Bhuvaneswari has also brought together her family in support of her, despite their differences or perceived differences with Naidu. Her sister Daggubati Purandeswari, who is now with the BJP and was a former Union minister of state in the UPA government, condemned the attacks on her sister. Purandeswari is not on good terms with Naidu.

Actor N.T. Rama Rao Jr, grandson of the late Rama Rao, has a massive following. But, apart from briefly taking part in the TDP’s election campaign in 2009, he has kept himself away from politics. There has even been talk of him being side-lined by Naidu over the years. However, NTR Jr, too, came forward in support of Naidu. “Respecting women is part of our culture,” he said. “I hope politicians stick to discussing public issues.”

Does the consolidation of NTR’s family hold any political significance for a party which is struggling? “NTR’s family only holds sentimental value,” said Hyderabad-based political analyst Telkapalli Ravi. “Naidu is stronger than them. He can support them and not vice versa.” Not coming to the assembly for the next three years may only be a loss for Naidu, he added.

Meanwhile, on the third day of the winter session, the state government made an unexpected move. Reddy held a cabinet meeting and then withdrew the controversial three-capital bill (which proposed three capitals, at Amaravati, Visakhapatnam and Kurnool), with the intent to present a new bill after wider consultations.

Analysts said that the withdrawal of the bill had eclipsed the issues raised by Naidu, making his breakdown and the subsequent developments just a flash in the pan with no political gains.