TDP Mahanadu inauguration today

By S. Nagesh Kumar

VISAKHAPATNAM, MAY 26. The stage is set at the Visakhapatnam Port Stadium complex for the three-day Telugu Desam Party Mahanadu, the party's annual general body meeting, which will be inaugurated by the TDP president, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu.

This is labelled as mini-Mahanadu because a full-fledged version involving mobilisation of people is held in the year preceding the Assembly elections. The air-conditioned Rajiv Gandhi indoor stadium is all decked up to receive the 5,782 invitees, who include mandal party presidents and politburo members. Hotels and guest houses in this port city were choc-a- bloc with Ministers, MPs and MLAs who arrived here a day in advance.

The conference will begin at 10.00 am on May 27 with the unfurling of the party's flag by Mr. Naidu and paying homage to the TDP's founder leader, N. T. Rama Rao, after which the TDP supremo will deliver his inaugural speech. The highlight of the second day's programme, coinciding with NTR's 79th birth anniversary, will be the election of the TDP president. It is a foregone conclusion that Mr. Naidu will be re-elected to the top post.

However, what the party leaders are anxiously awaiting is the nomination of members to the politburo and executive, a prerogative that the party leader enjoys. The politburo will have 11 members now (against nine earlier) while the executive committee is being restructured to include three vice-presidents, three general secretaries, 12 secretaries and a treasurer. In addition, there will be seven committees dealing with subjects like finance, HRD, publicity, discipline, technology and programmes and 11 affiliated bodies.

In keeping with the party's latest strategy of taking the bull by its horns, the TDP leaders have drafted a resolution on the issue of backward areas and allotted one full hour for a discussion on it on May 28.

Having already amplified its stand in favour of a unified Andhra Pradesh and reiterated its commitment to development of Telangana, the TDP leaders, including the president, are expected to give a rebuttal to the outcry by the Telangana Rashtra Samithi and the Congress MLAs that the present Government is responsible for the regional imbalances.

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