Days after announcing that he would join actor-politician Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena Party in Andhra Pradesh, BJP MLA Akula Satyanarayana on Sunday resigned from his party and also from his position as a legislator.
In a letter addressed to BJP state chief Kanna Lakshminarayana, Akula said, “I am also to inform you that I herewith resign from all positions in the party, including my party primary membership and also the position of MLA and Whip of BJP Legislature Party of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly. This may be regarded as my resignation letter.”
In another letter addressed to Speaker Kodela Sivaprasad, Akula said that he was resigning as the legislator of Rajamahendravaram. He is expected to hand over this letter to the Speaker personally on Monday in the state’s capital, Amaravati.
Following this, he is scheduled to meet Pawan in Vijayawada on Monday and join the Jana Sena. Speaking to reporters earlier this week, Akula said that he did not demand any particular ticket, he said that he would strive to work for the party and carry out whatever duties were assigned to him.
The latest move could be seen as a boost for the Jana Sena party which is looking for more leaders who can be put up as MLA and MP candidates as the state heads for simultaneous Legislative Assembly and Lok Sabha polls in a matter of months. Pawan Kalyan had earlier announced that his party would contest in all 175 constituencies in Andhra Pradesh in 2019.
The party has already been allotted its poll symbol—a glass tumbler – by the Election Commission.
For a long time, Pawan Kalyan was the lone face of the party, without a second rung of leaders. However, Congress leader and former AP speaker Nadendla Manohar recently joined the party to fill the visible void. Former Andhra Minister and TDP MLA Ravela Kishore Babu also later joined hands with Pawan.
In the 2019 Assembly Elections, Pawan Kalyan will be up against the ruling TDP led by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and YS Jaganmohan Reddy’s YSR Congress Party.