BJP springs surprise, appoints Purandeswari Andhra Pradesh president

NEW DELHI: Springing a big surprise, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday appointed Daggubati Purandeswari as the President of its Andhra Pradesh unit. Party’s National General Secretary Arun Singh made this announcement in a press release, thus bringing an end to the nearly three-year reign of Veerraju at the helm.

In another significant move, viewed largely as a balancing act, the BJP accommodated recent entrant and former chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh Nallari Kiran Kumar Reddy as a National Executive Member. With the appointment of Purandeswari succeeding Somu Veerraju, the BJP is hoping for a resurrection in a State where it has been reduced to a mere bystander.

Unlike in Telangana where Kishan Reddy was tipped to replace Bandi Sanjay for quite some time, the BJP managed to keep the appointment of Purandeswari under tight wraps until it was announced on Tuesday. Till now, there was intense speculation that Satyakumar, a one-time personal assistant of former Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu, would be elevated to the key party position. At one time, it was also widely believed that Sujana Chowdary was also in the race to emerge as Veerraju’s successor.

But springing a big surprise and proving these speculations wrong, the BJP Central leadership opted for Purandeswari in its hopes of reviving the party in Andhra Pradesh.