As the exit polls began to become public from 6 PM on Sunday, the Opposition was shocked into silence and the faces of the Opposition leaders became colourless. Unlike last time when there were just 8 exit polls, this time around there was a surfeit of exit polls and all of them predicted a Modi tsunami. So shocking were the results that the Opposition appeared to have lost the will to wait till May 23. Sonia Gandhi's scheduled meeting with BSP chief Mayawati was cancelled. This sent signals that the Opposition has lost heart.
The only exception was Chandrababu Naidu. Not one to give up so easily, Chandrababu airdashed to Kolkata, met Mamta Didi and explained to her that there was no way that the BJP would cross 200 seats. He then spoke to her about devising a post-poll strategy for the Opposition. He tried to convince her that the exit poll results being aired by the channels was a trademark Modi strategy to make the Opposition dispirited and divided. He then made the Congress say that it would be ready to play second fiddle to smaller parties, if it meant keeping Modi out of power.
So, why is Chandrababu Naidu so active in national politics and why is he trying to bring all the Opposition platforms under one roof? Sources say that this part of his plan to stay relevant even if he loses the AP Assembly. He wants to ensure that he will still have a key role at least in the national politics, if not the state politics. He feels that he should have some political significance even in the event of the TDP losing power. It is with this end in view that he is trying to unite the Opposition against Modi.
The only exception was Chandrababu Naidu. Not one to give up so easily, Chandrababu airdashed to Kolkata, met Mamta Didi and explained to her that there was no way that the BJP would cross 200 seats. He then spoke to her about devising a post-poll strategy for the Opposition. He tried to convince her that the exit poll results being aired by the channels was a trademark Modi strategy to make the Opposition dispirited and divided. He then made the Congress say that it would be ready to play second fiddle to smaller parties, if it meant keeping Modi out of power.
So, why is Chandrababu Naidu so active in national politics and why is he trying to bring all the Opposition platforms under one roof? Sources say that this part of his plan to stay relevant even if he loses the AP Assembly. He wants to ensure that he will still have a key role at least in the national politics, if not the state politics. He feels that he should have some political significance even in the event of the TDP losing power. It is with this end in view that he is trying to unite the Opposition against Modi.