Amid talks on the formation of a political front ahead of the 2019 general elections, Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao will meet his Odisha counterpart Naveen Patnaik in Bhubaneswar in the first week of May, informed sources said.
Rao, who heads the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, will meet Patnaik, the Biju Janata Dal President, in Bhubaneswar.
Rao will first visit the world famous Jagannath temple in Puri and then call on the Odisha Chief Minister, the sources said.
Though there is no formal political agenda, both leaders are likely to discuss the current political situation and formation of an alternative front as both the parties are maintaining equidistance from the Bharatiya Janata Party as well as the Congress.
However, Patnaik said they would not discuss the possibility of a third front.
"The Telangana Chief Minister is visiting Puri on a pilgrimage. On the way, he will pay a courtesy call (on me). There will be no discussion on the federal front or anything that has to do with politics," Patnaik told reporters in Bhubaneswar.
Even though Patnaik has so far not revealed his plans vis-a-vis national politics, the proposed meeting is expected to throw light on the BJD's future course of action with regard to the federal front.
Rao met West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata last month and Janata Dal-Secular chief and former Prime Minister HD Deve Gowda last week.
KCR later told reporters that he came to Bengaluru to seek Deve Gowda's blessings and the JD-S leader extended his support to the initiative to form a front.
Deve Gowda's son and former Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and well-known actor Prakash Raj were also present during the meeting.
The Telangana Chief Minister reiterated that the front was proposed not to play "silly politics" but was aimed at bringing qualitative change in the country's politics. He said the front would bring together farmers and masses of India.
KCR said both the Congress and BJP, who together ruled for over 65 years, miserably failed to deliver. He said the national agenda of the proposed front will be unveiled before 2019 and any party who agrees to this agenda can join the front.