Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has put to rest the rumors of early elections in the state. During a workshop organized by him on April 3, Jagan clarified that there will be no early elections in the state, which had been speculated in political circles following his frequent visits to Delhi to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He stated that there is still one more year for the elections, thereby ruling out the possibility of dissolving the Assembly and forcing an advanced election.
Jagan also addressed the reports of around 60 MLAs not getting tickets again to contest the elections, for which he asked the leaders to counter such misinformation effectively on social media. He urged the party leaders to widely promote the government schemes in their respective constituencies and be prepared for the Assembly elections next year.
The opposition party – Telugu Desam Party – has been anticipating the advancement of elections and predicts that Jagan might dissolve the government and go for early elections because of the poor financial condition of the state and a dent in Jagan’s image. TDP state president K Atchannaidu also alleged that there is dissent within the YSRCP, with about 75 MLAs unhappy under the leadership of Jagan.
The TDP, which had convened its strategy meeting in February in anticipation of early elections, said that they will win 160 seats in the Assembly elections and form the government. The last Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh were held in April 2019. If the state has to go for polls as per schedule, the next election will be held in April 2024.
