Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aditya Thackeray today urged the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Janta Dal United (JDU), crucial allies of the upcoming NDA government at the Centre, to demand the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post.
Thackeray took to X (formerly Twitter) to say, “A humble suggestion to the possible allies of the BJP in the newly remembered NDA: Get the post of the Speaker.”
Referring to splits in the Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Thackeray warned, “Having experienced the tactics of the BJP, the minute they form government with you, they will break the promises and try to break your parties too. You’ll have experienced it earlier,” tagging the TDP and JDU in the post.
As the BJP has failed to cross the majority mark on its own, the support of TDP and JDU along with other allies including the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Chirag Paswan’s LJP has become critical for Narendra Modi’s third term as PM.
While Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP won 16 seats in Andhra Pradesh, Nitish Kumar’s JDU secured 12 in Bihar. With their 28 and additions from other allies, the NDA has 293 seats, of which the BJP has bagged 240.
The TDP and JDU, which have emerged as kingmakers, have already put forth their demands, which include the Speaker’s post.
According to reports, the TDP is seeking five ministerial positions, including a Minister of State for Finance and the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post. The TDP may also aim for portfolios such as Roads, Panchayati Raj, Health, and Education. However, it is not known if he is still pushing for a special status for Andhra Pradesh, a longstanding demand which prompted TDP’s bitter exit from the NDA in 2018.
The JDU has reportedly requested two cabinet berths and one MoS role, with the Railways Minister position being a priority. The JDU has already called for a reassessment of the controversial Agniveer scheme, which it believes had a negative impact on the 2024 Lok Sabha election results. Another condition put forth is a special status for Bihar, according to reports.
Late TDP leader GMC Balayogi served as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha during Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s tenure as prime minister, before he tragically died in a helicopter crash in Andhra Pradesh in 2002.
Senior BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP GVL Narasimha Rao informed reporters that discussions among NDA partners are ongoing, but no clear decisions have been made yet. “No information has come out so far. We will have to wait until it comes out officially. We know that discussions are going on. But we don’t have information on how many seats (cabinet berths) are being offered,” he said.
In 2014, when the TDP was also part of the NDA, the party received one cabinet minister post and one minister of state post. P Ashok Gajapathi Raju and YS Chowdary (now in BJP) served in the cabinet from June 2014 to 2018.
