In what can be considered a serious snub to Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, his Odisha counterpart and Biju Janata Dal president Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday declared that there was no question of joining “Mahaghatbandhan” (Grand Alliance) proposed by the former to pull down the Bharatiya Janata Party government at the Centre led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"I want to clarify that as far as the Mahagathbandhan is concerned, the Biju Janata Dal is not a part of it,” Patnaik told media.
Interestingly, it was only on Tuesday he said in Delhi that the BJD had not yet decided on joining the grand alliance and would need some time to think it over.
The decision comes amid talks between various parties to form alliances before the crucial 2019 polls.
Interestingly, Patnaik endorsed Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao’s stand for keeping away from both the Congress and the BJP. He said his party would also not join the BJP-led NDA.
“We shall maintain equidistance from both the Congress and the BJP,” he said.
KCR, who had started a campaign to build a non-BJP, non-Congress federal front, met Naveen Patnaik and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee. Both chief ministers made no commitment about their participation in the Federal Front.