PRP will form next government in AP: Chiru

Ruling out the possibility of a hung assembly, Praja Rajyam Party chief Chiranjeevi today asserted that his party would form the next government in Andhra Pradesh by securing "nothing less than 160 seats" in the recently concluded polls.

Talking to newsmen at the end of the PRP's political affairs committee meeting here today, Chiranjeevi said, " That people are longing for a change has become evident in the elections.. Where there was a silent voting in favour of PRP. Mostly women and youths silently voted in a big way for our party."

Also, the PRP also left a profound impact on the voters, as the trends indicated, he said.

Though he did not specify the number of Lok Sabha seats his party would win, Chiranjeevi said they would support the Fourth Front to form the next government at the Centre.

Asked which seat he would vacate in case of his election from Palakollu and Tirupati, the PRP chief said, "I have not yet decided on this. But whichever seat I will vacate, I will adopt that constituency and strive for its development like the one I retain."

He alleged that the ruling Congress spent crores of rupees and pumped liquor so heavily to defeat him in both the places.

"The Congress stooped to such a low that it flooded both Palakollu and Tirupati with money and liquor with the sole objective of defeating me in the elections. But the vigilant voters did not fall prey to such nefarious tricks," Chiranjeevi pointed out.

He complimented the state Chief Electoral Officer I V Subba Rao and Director General of Police A K Mohanty for ensuring free and fair elections without any malpractices.

Earlier, PRPs political affairs committee reviewed the electoral prospects of the party. It also reportedly discussed the possibility of a hung Assembly and the strategy to be adopted by the party in such eventuality.

Senior PRP leaders P Shiv Shanker, P Upendra, Allu Aravind, K Kala Venkat Rao and others attended the meeting.

The party's ideologue and one of the founding fathers P Mitra was conspicuous by his absence amidst talk that he was quitting the party.