Former election campaign strategist Prashant Kishor met with Telugu Desam Party (TDP) President Chandrababu Naidu in an unexpected move that has sparked speculation about his involvement with the party. This development comes just four months before the Assembly polls in Andhra Pradesh, adding to the intrigue surrounding the political landscape in the state.
Prashant Kishor’s Indian Political Action Committee (I-PAC) played a significant role in the YSR Congress’ impressive victory in the state in 2019. As a result, it raised eyebrows when Kishor’s outfit was hired by the party once again for the upcoming 2024 elections. His meeting with Naidu suggests the possibility of Kishor providing counsel to the TDP, which has attracted attention due to his prior association with their rival party.
The meeting’s significance was evident as Kishor flew from Hyderabad to Vijayawada in a private plane accompanied by TDP General Secretary Nara Lokesh, who is also Naidu’s son, and three other individuals. One of the three individuals was a former member of I-PAC who left to join ShowTime Consulting, a political strategy firm founded by Robin Sharma that advises the TDP. In Andhra Pradesh, Rishi Raj Singh leads I-PAC.
I-PAC took to social media to reaffirm its commitment to working with the YSR Congress, stating that they will continue their efforts until Jagan Mohan Reddy secures another resounding victory in the 2024 elections. Meanwhile, Robin Sharma had also advised Lokesh during his Yuva Galam padyatra, a march that covered 3,132 km in Andhra Pradesh over 226 days and concluded on December 18. It is worth noting that a similar march by Jagan Mohan Reddy played a significant role in his party’s triumph in the 2019 elections.
Prashant Kishor, known for his role in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 2014 campaign and his brief association with Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), stepped away from election strategy following the Trinamool Congress’ victory in the West Bengal elections in 2021. He subsequently founded the Jan Suraaj campaign in 2022 and transitioned into a political activist. While Kishor has embarked on a padyatra, he has stated that he has no intentions of contesting elections himself but has not ruled out the possibility of Jan Suraaj transforming into a political party.
The political calculations for both the YSR Congress and the TDP now encompass the results in Telangana, where the Congress achieved an unexpected victory against K Chandrashekar Rao of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi. This outcome is significant, considering Rao’s popularity despite ruling the state since its formation in 2014. Telangana, which was carved out of Andhra Pradesh, shares similar issues with its neighboring Telugu state and will likely influence the strategies of both parties.
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