Andhra Pradesh - Telugu Desam Party quits the NDA

NEW DELHI: Andhra Pradesh s Telugu Desam Party (TDP) - which has 16 MPs - today quit the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at the Centre a week after two of its representatives left the Narendra Modi government and a day after the YSR Congress moved a no-trust motion against the Modi government. The N Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP and the YSR Congress are extremely unhappy that the Centre has not given special status to Andhra Pradesh. The TDP pulling out of the NDA coalition hasn t come as a complete surprise considering two TDP members quit the Narendra Modi ministry in Delhi on March 8. The TDP s decision to quit the NDA was taken unanimously by the party politburo. The BJP has 275 MPs in the Lok Sabha including two nominated MPs. Yesterday Andhra Pradesh chief minister Naidu announced support for a no-trust motion against the Centre moved by YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy. The no-trust motion was moved against the Modi government over its refusal to grant special category status to Andhra Pradesh. It s the first such move in the tenure of the NDA government. BJP has cheated Telugu people this time also they have succeeded in doing so we will be moving a no-confidence mo https://t.co/DmvdU4sUdN ANI (@ANI) 1521173077000 TDP and YSR Congress have been agitating in both Houses over the special status demand and the former has even pulled its ministers out of the central government. Andhra CM makes fresh demand for special category status YSR Congress MP Y V Subba Reddy gave the notice to the Lok Sabha secretariat for including the motion in Friday s list of business. Government sources said the notice would need to be examined but would not make much headway unless a significant section of the opposition supported it. Letter of YSR Congress Party MP YV Subba Reddy to Lok Sabha Secretary-General for moving motion on No-Confidence i https://t.co/BDiHBoFpTp ANI (@ANI) 1521172160000 Special category status to Andhra Pradesh: YSR Congress to move no-trust motion TDP vows supportThe YSR Congress submitted a notice for a no-confidence motion against the Modi government for its refusal to grant special category status to AP the first such move in the tenure of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government setting the stage for engrossing politics on Friday morning in the Lok Sabha. Jaganmohan Reddy asserted that if the Centre remained reluctant to grant special category status to the state then all MPs of his party will resign on April 6. Read this story in Bengali Amaravati: YSR Congress president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy today said the TDP had woken up to the needs of Andhra Pradesh by giving a notice for a no trust vote against the Narendra Modi government over special status to the state.His remark came after the TDP this morning quit the NDA following the Centre s refusal to give Andhra Pradesh Special Category Status (SCS).TDP leader Thota Narasimham today gave a notice in the Lok Sabha to move the no trust vote on Monday.Terming the TDP s decision a win for democracy Mr Reddy asserted his party would continue to fight for Special Category Status (SCS) for Andhra Pradesh. After 4 years of relentless struggle and fight by YSRCP with people s support for Special Category Status; finally the nation including @ncbn s TDP wakes up! Mr Jagan said in a tweet.He said that even if guided by political compulsion the TDP had to yet again follow the YSRCP s lead of moving a no-confidence motion against the Centre for not granting SCS to the state. Win for democracy & people of AP. YSRCP will continue to fight for SCS the rights of the people of AP Mr Reddy who is also the Leader of Opposition in Andhra Pradesh said in another tweet.The YSRC had yesterday issued a notice to the Lok Sabha Secretary-General for moving a no-confidence motion against the NDA government.It said that this was for failing to implement the AP Reorganisation Act 2014 and also the promises made in Rajya Sabha by then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh including grant of special status.Initially the main opposition party in Andhra Pradesh wanted to move the motion on March 21 but with indications that the Lok Sabha may be adjourned sine die ahead of schedule it decided to move the motion today.The TDP which last evening announced support for the no trust vote today decided to move a motion on its own. Supporting a no-confidence motion moved by a thieves party (YSRC) will send wrong signals to the people. Hence we should move a motion on our own TDP president and Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu told his party leaders via a tele-conference. YSRC s notice (for a no-trust motion) will have only five signatures whereas we have 16. It will be easy for us to muster support of 51 MPs (required for the motion to be taken up) Mr Naidu said.He alleged that the BJP was enacting a drama through Mr Reddy and Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan. You move a no-confidence motion and make your MPs resign. We will grant SCS and make believe it happened only because of you. That s the BJP drama through Jagan the chief minister alleged. CommentsThe TDP chief said that the BJP was enacting another drama through Mr Kalyan by asking him to launch a fast-unto-death. People are watching all this and they will teach a fitting lesson he said. NEW DELHI: YSR Congress and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) will push for acceptance of their notices for no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government when Lok Sabha meets on Monday amid no signs of a let-up in the Parliament deadlock. Y V Subba Reddy of YSR Congress wrote to the Lok Sabha secretariat to put his notice in the revised list of business for Monday. TDP has also moved a notice for a no-confidence motion as parties like Congress Left Trinamool and RJD have come out in support. When their notices were not accepted last week parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar had said they could not be taken up due to the House being not in order with members of several parties raising slogans in the well. With Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) and AIADMK which have often cooperated with the government on its legislative business protesting over a host of issues it remains uncertain if order can be restored in the lower House on Monday. While the first two weeks of the last phase of the budget session have been a washout the government has managed to get some key bills and the budget passed amid din through a voice vote without debate. YSR Congress was the first to give a notice last week for a no-trust motion after the Centre made it clear that it would not grant special category status to Andhra Pradesh. Not to be outdone by its main rival in the state TDP a long-time BJP ally then decided to break its ties over the issue and brought a no-confidence motion of its own. Both parties have been lobbying with opposition parties for support to their respective notices. A no-confidence motion notice has to be supported by at least 50 MPs to be taken up in the House. The government has expressed confidence that the notices even if they are admitted will be defeated given its strength in Lok Sabha where the ruling NDA has a clear majority. The current strength of Lok Sabha is 539 (excluding the Speaker) and the ruling BJP has 275 members (including the Speaker and two nominated members) more than the majority mark of 271 and enjoys the support of several allies. CHENNAI: As Andhra Pradesh s ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) on Friday pulled out of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and was set to move a no-confidence motion against the government Tamil Nadu s AIADMK said it was yet to decide on its move. Reacting to the political developments at the national level MDMK leader Vaiko urged the AIADMK party to utilise this opportunity and pressurise the BJP-led central government to set up the Cauvery Management Board (CMB) for support against the no-confidence motion. With the third largest number of members (37) in the Lok Sabha after the BJP and Congress the AIADMK was undecided whether to support or oppose the motion said a senior party leader. The party will take a decision on the issue and one cannot comment on that now the AIADMK leader told IANS preferring anonymity. The BJP and PMK has one seat each in Lok Sabha from Tamil Nadu. The leader said the possibility of the BJP government defeating the no-confidence motion is relatively high with the support from smaller parties. We expect the no-confidence motion to be moved by the Congress. The party is in alliance with DMK in Tamil Nadu. In short the anti-AIADMK alliance will be moving the no-confidence motion and it may not be politically possible to support that given the stakes at the state level he added. Adding further even if the no-confidence motion wins then the the question of who would stake the claim to form the government aligning with whom is there he said. The BJP government may continue to be a caretaker government and then face the electorate he added. TDP chief and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Friday discussed with party leaders the proposal to move the No-Confidence Motion against the Narendra Modi government. During a teleconference while deciding to pull out of the NDA Naidu said that the party should move the no-trust motion on its own instead of supporting the one being moved by their rival YSR Congress Party. Naidu directed TDP MP Thota Narasimham to submit a notice to the Lok Sabha Secretariat in this regard informed sources said. Narasimham in a letter to the Lok Sabha Secretary Snehlata Shrivastava said: This House expresses No-Confidence in the Council of Ministers... I request you to include the motion in the revised list of Business for March 16. The no-trust move could become an opportune moment for the AIADMK to pressurise the Centre to set up the Cauvery Management Board (CMB) and Cauvery Water Regulatory Committee (CWRC). On Thursday the Tamil Nadu Assembly passed an unanimous resolution demanding the central government to set up the CMB and CWRC as per the Supreme Court order. The AIADMK members are protesting outside the Parliament demanding the central government to set up the CMB and CWRC. .story-content span .story-content p .story-content div color:#000!important;font-family: open sans Arial!important;font-size:15px!important ALSO READ No-confidence motion against NDA: Modi in safe-zone Opposition backs TDP What is a no-confidence motion in Parliament: Everything you wanted to know TDP exits NDA moves no-confidence motion; gets support from Congress Left Chandrababu Naidu s TDP exits power-drunk Modi govt: Top 10 developments BJP units in Andhra TN Delhi directionless ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha polls span.p-content div id = div-gpt line-height:0;font-size:0 The N Chandrababu Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Y S Jaganmohan Reddy-led Yuvajana Shramika Rythu Congress Party (YSR Congress Party) on Monday will push their notices of no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government in the Lok Sabha as they continue their respective agitations for the granting of a special-category status to Andhra Pradesh. The development comes after the TDP quit the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and moved a no-confidence motion on Friday a day after the YSR Congress Party had moved a no-confidence motion against the Modi government. Their notices were not taken up last week because of the din in the House. YSR Congress Party s Y V Subba Reddy has written to the Lok Sabha secretariat to put his notice of the motion in the revised list of business for today. The TDP has also moved a notice for a no-confidence motion. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar has said that the TDP and YSR Congress Party s notices were not taken up last week due to the House not being in order with members of several parties raising slogans in the Well. However Monday might not prove very fruitful for the two parties from Andhra Pradesh as the Lok Sabha will meet today amid no signs of a let-up in the deadlock in the House s proceedings. It remains uncertain if order will be restored in the Lok Sabha today with the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi protesting over a host of issues. The proceedings in Parliament were washed out for the second consecutive week on Friday due to protests by Opposition parties. Both the parties from Andhra Pradesh have been protesting and agitating as the Centre has refused to grant the state a special-category status. The political tussle in the state and at the national level saw the TDP and the BJP engage in an escalating and heated exchange which culminated in the end of their alliance. Both parties have been lobbying with opposition parties for support to their respective notices. However even if the no-confidence motions are admitted the Modi government has expressed confidence that they will be defeated given its strength in the Lok Sabha. Here are the top 10 developments around the TDP-BJP split and the no-confidence motions against the Modi government: 1) TDP YSR Congress to push no-confidence motions against Modi govt in Lok Sabha today: With their agitation for a special-category status for Andhra continuing the YSR Congress and the Telugu Desam Party today will pitch for their notices of a no-confidence motion against the Modi government being taken when the Lok Sabha which has seen no signs of a let-up in the deadlock in its proceedings meets. In a notice to the Lok Sabha General-Secretary the YSR Congress on Sunday once again sought to move a no-confidence motion in the Lower House on March 19 against the Centre over its refusal to grant special-category status to Andhra Pradesh. Under Rule 198(B) of chapter XVII of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of business in Lok Sabha I hereby give notice to move the following motion in the House on 19.03.2018 party leader YV Subba Reddy said in a letter. This House expressed No confidence in the Council of Ministers read the Motion stated therein. 2) BJP minister says ready to face no-confidence motions: Stating that the NDA enjoys confidence inside and outside the Parliament Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Ananth Kumar has ruled out any threat to the Narendra Modi government from the no-confidence motions moved against it. Further Kumar has asserted that the BJP was ready to face the no-confidence motions. I want to tell the Congress and other Opposition members that there is confidence inside and outside the House. That s why the BJP is ready to face the no-confidence motion said Kumar. ALSO READ: What is a no-confidence motion in Parliament: Everything you wanted to know 3) BJP says it gave Andhra billions but TDP still left NDA: The BJP-led NDA government at the Centre has been trying to highlight what it has done for Andhra Pradesh since the spat with its ally the TDP went public. Kumar said that though the Modi government generously released an additional grant of Rs 240 billion (Rs 24 000 crore) after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh the TDP took the decision to walk out of the NDA and move a no-confidence motion against the Modi government keeping some of its issues in mind . The Union minister claimed that no state in the country had ever received funds the way Andhra Pradesh had for the construction and development of its capital Amaravati the Polavaram dam national highways irrigation projects and houses for the poor. Further the minister felt that the TDP s decision and actions were taken due to the agitation by the Congress and the YSR Congress Party over the granting of special-category status. He stressed that the BJP was always with the people of Andhra Pradesh and was committed to their development. ALSO READ: No-confidence motion against NDA: Modi in safe-zone Opposition backs TDP 4) BJP ready to go beyond giving Andhra Pradesh a special-category status: The BJP asserted that it was ready to do more than just give special-category status to Andhra Pradesh a day after the state s chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu pulled out the Telugu Desam Party from the NDA alliance. BJP National General Secretary Ram Madhav told news agencies that the party would explain to the people of Andhra Pradesh the things that we have done for them in last four years and things we will do . He added that the BJP was ready to do more than the special status . We will pass a resolution in which we will explain to the people of Andhra Pradesh our stand on the issue raised by Andhra chief minister. We are as much committed to the people as him. We have done so much in the last four years Madhav added. On being questioned if the TDP would come back to the NDA fold Madhav said You will have to ask that to the Telugu Desam Party. ALSO READ: TDP exits NDA moves no-confidence motion; gets support from Congress Left 5) DMK nudges CM Palaniswami to support TDP s no-trust motion: The TDP s split with the NDA and the no-confidence motions against the BJP-led government have also received attention from other regional parties. Mounting pressure on the AIADMK over the Cauvery issue Tamil Nadu s Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has said that Chief Minister K Palaniswami should support TDP s no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha if he is truly interested in the constitution of the Cauvery Management Board (CMB). If Palaniswami is truly interested in the constitution of the CMB within six weeks he should courageously decide to support the no-trust motion DMK leader M K Stalin said. Days after the Tamil Nadu Assembly adopted a resolution urging the Centre to set up the CMB the DMK leader who has been targeting the ruling regime on the Cauvery issue said this was an opportune moment to establish Tamil Nadu s rights over the Cauvery. Stalin said that if his party had representation in the Lok Sabha DMK would have immediately supported the move. The State government led by the AIADMK should come forward to take such a step and when it does that we in the Opposition will follow suit he said. Blaming the BJP-led Centre for its big brother attitude the DMK leader said his party was duty-bound to welcome TDP s decision as an organisation committed to states autonomy. On Friday AIADMK leader D Jayakumar had hit back at the TDP following its decision to cut ties with the NDA alleging that the decision was opportunistic in nature. ALSO READ: Union Minister Ananth Kumar rules out TDP s no-confidence motion threat 6) Amit Shah takes stock of Andhra situation: BJP President Amit Shah has taken stock of the political situation in Andhra Pradesh with party leaders from the state after its long-time ally TDP s exit from the NDA over granting a special-category status to the state. Besides BJP general secretary Ram Madhav Andhra Pradesh BJP chief K Hari Babu was among the leaders who held deliberations with Shah. In Andhra Pradesh the saffron party finds itself in a tight corner as the state s two main parties the TDP and the YSR Congress have sought to corner it following the Centre s refusal to grant special status. The state sends 25 MPs to the Lok Sabha and is scheduled to go to Assembly polls simultaneously with the parliamentary elections next year. The BJP had won two Lok Sabha seats in 2014 in alliance with the TDP which won 15 seats. However BJP leaders have said that the TDP s decision to sever ties with them has provided their party an opportunity to expand its footprints in the state ahead of the next Lok Sabha polls. ALSO READ: AIMIM will support TDP s no-confidence motion against Modi govt: Owaisi 7) Andhra BJP confident: The BJP s Andhra Pradesh unit for its part has expressed confidence in their party s ability to overcome the political storm. K Haribabu the Andhra Pradesh BJP chief said that the party had absolute majority in the Lok Sabha and was ready to face any situation and discussion . All these parties coming together cannot harm Modi govt; we are comfortably placed Haribabu told news agencies. BJP has got absolute majority in Lok Sabha and we are ready to face any situation and discussion. All these parties coming together cannot harm Modi Govt we are comfortably placed:K Haribabu Andhra Pradesh BJP chief on TDP and YSRCP no confidence motion pic.twitter.com/1ThEcae1xb ANI (@ANI) March 19 2018 8) Chandrababu Naidu says it was pointless to continue in NDA : In a letter to BJP president Amit Shah TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu said that the party felt it was pointless to continue in the NDA as the Centre had failed to discharge its constitutional responsibilities in implementing the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014 in letter and spirit. He pointed out that on most of the crucial provisions of the Act and the assurances given in the Rajya Sabha progress was tardy unsatisfactory and disappointing . In the four-page letter the TDP chief wrote: Today a feeling is gaining ground in our state that the BJP is not sensitive to the aspirations of our people. We feel the government headed by it is not willing to implement in letter and spirit the provisions in the AP Reorganisation Act and the assurances given by the then Prime Minister in Rajya Sabha he said. The TDP chief said his party had joined the alliance in the hope that the state would get fair treatment and the expectation that the people would get justice. When our being in the alliance doesn t serve that purpose we feel that it is pointless to continue he noted. ALSO READ: YSRCP chief says TDP s Naidu followed his lead on no-confidence motion 9) Endlessly waiting for Andhra govt to respond to special package : Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said that the Centre was committed to giving Andhra Pradesh a special package equivalent to a special category state and has been endlessly waiting for the state government to revert on the mechanism for receiving it. Jaitley said that the modalities of giving the special package were agreed back in September 2016. However he added that only in January this year the state government suggested a change in the route for receiving the funds to which the Centre agreed but has not heard from it ever since. A solution has been put on the table. It is for Andhra Pradesh to decide whether they want the resources or they want to make an issue (out of it) he told news agencies. ALSO READ: Chandrababu Naidu s TDP exits power-drunk Modi govt: Top 10 developments 10) Modi govt can defeat no-confidence motions: Notwithstanding the TDP quitting the NDA the BJP-led government still has a comfortable majority in the Lok Sabha. It has the support of around 315 members and on its own has 274 -- well above the current halfway mark of 270. After the recent losses in the Uttar Pradesh and Bihar bypolls the BJP on its own has 274 members and its allies account for 41 members. They include a sulking Shiv Sena (18) which has still not said which way it will vote on TDP s no-confidence motion. The others are the Lok Janshakti Party (6) Akali Dal (4) Rashtriya Lok Samta Party (3) Apna Dal (2) JD-U (2) and AINRC JKPDP NPP PMK SDF Swabhimani Paksha -- all one each. ALSO READ: BJP units in Andhra TN Delhi directionless ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha polls The AIADMK which had contested the 2014 polls against the BJP but is generally seen to be its ally has 37 MPs. The TDP which withdrew support to the Modi government and has moved a no-confidence motion has 16 MPs while the YSRCP which has also moved a no-confidence motion has nine MPs in the Lok Sabha. Making the prospects of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) tough in 2019 elections its ally Janasena of actor-turned politician Pawan Kalyan has for the first time accused it of deep-rooted corruption and vowed to fight against all-pervading corruption. This could prove a setback to TDP which has pulled out representatives from the Union cabinet last week while indicating to severe ties with ally BJP. It was the critical last-minute support of Pawan Kalyan that helped the TDP-BJP alliance to come to power in 2014 which was repeatedly acknowledged by both TDP and BJP. Speaking at a heavily crowded public meeting near Guntur on Wednesday the Janasena president has also vowed to fight against the Centre and build peoples movements for achieving special category status to Andhra Pradesh. He has warned the Centre not to test the patience of people of Andhra and hurt their sentiments on the promised special category status while accusing the BJP government of betraying the Andhra people. He has also accused the Union government of resorting to constitutional violation by going back on the special category status. The Janasena president has vowed to go on fast-unto-death if needed in the fight for achieving special category status and for fulfilment of other promises and assurances of the government made on the floor of Parliament. Claiming to have maintained utmost restraint for the last four years on the performance of TDP government in Andhra for having extended electoral support Pawan Kalyan said he was badly disappointed with Chandrababu Naidu s performance in rebuilding the residual state. He questioned the achievements of Chandrababu Naidu on delivering corruptfree fair and just governance apart from airing displeasure over his failure in attracting significant investments and providing jobs to youth. The actor-turned politician also said he was ashamed at seeing Andhra Pradesh topping the corruption charts while accusing the chief minister s son and minister Nara Lokesh of indulging in large-scale corruption deals. Accusing the TDP government of resorting to centralised development around the capital region he warned the Chandrababu Naidu government of neglecting the development of North Andhra and Rayalaseema regions which could propel regional agitations. He also found fault with the TDP government for acquiring nearly one lakh acres of land for the Greenfield capital city Amaravati from the farmers deviating from the earlier assurance of the chief minister that some 2 000 acres was enough to build the capital city. Pawan Kalyan has also aired serious concerns over the likely fate of farmers who had surrendered thousands of acres of their precious land for the construction of capital city. Predicting significant changes in the political landscape of Andhra Pradesh Pawan Kalyan said his party would play a key role while making it clear that he will not in 2019 elections support TDP that had lost the people s trust. Not sparing the opposition YSR Congress party Pawan Kalyan accused it of forming tacit deals with the BJP and questioned how its leader Vijay Sai Reddy could manage to often meet prime minister Narendra Modi whom the chief minister Chandrababu Naidu could not meet for 29 times. HYDERABAD | NEW DELHI: YSR Congress Andhra Pradesh s principal opposition party today backed ruling TDP on special category status for the state. The party insisted that TDP move a no-confidence motion in Parliament against Modi government. Earlier Finance minister Arun Jaitley s promise to give monetary equivalent of a special category status to Andhra Pradesh had failed to pacify Telugu Desam Party which announced late on Wednesday that it would withdraw its two ministers from the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance government. The announcement was made by Andhra Pradesh chief minister and TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu after an hour-long meeting with party MPs MLAs and cabinet colleagues. Civil aviation minister A Gajapathi Raju and minister of state for science and technology YS Chowdary will submit resignations to the prime minister on Thursday. Naidu said he had tried to reach out to PM Modi to convey his party s decision before publicly announcing it but in vain. We have shown patience for four years. I tried to convince the Centre The Centre is not in a mood to listen he told reporters in Amravati the capital of Andhra. Asked if TDP would sever ties with NDA the TDP supremo said his party will decide the future course of action based on the response from BJP. Naidu said FM Jaitley had given the impression that TDP was asking for too much . FM Jaitley today not only de nied special category status to Andhra Pradesh as promised under the state reorganisation Act but also spoke in a way of insulting and humiliating the state by trying to project as if we were making unjustified demands against national interests said the Andhra CM. Naidu who spoke in the state assembly earlier on Wednesday reiterated the demand for special category status benefits for the state rebutting the central government s claim over implementation of promises made under the state reorganisation Act. He said it was BJP s moral responsibility to fulfil the promises made during the bifurcation of the state. TDP s decision to withdraw ministers could be a last ditch attempt to bargain with the NDA regime at the Centre. It also sends the message to the people of Andhra Pradesh that the party tried its best to wrest special category status for the state but was let down. The TDP announcement comes a year before Andhra Pradesh polls that will be held along with the 2019 general elections. The party was under pressure in the state as rival YSR Congress Party had often alleged that despite being an ally of the ruling BJP at the Centre TDP had failed to get special category status for Andhra. TDP s decision would be a déjà vu for BJP as the southern party had similarly walked out in 2004 when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the prime minister. BJP s allies have been unhappy with it for the past few months. Shiv Sena has declared that it will contest the next general and state elections without an alliance with the BJP while Shiromani Akali Dal has complained that the saffron party does not respect its allies. Tension had been brewing between TDP and the Modi government for some months. Naidu had made 29 trips to New Delhi before he could have a structured meeting with Modi in January this year. On its part the Centre said it was bound by the 14th Finance Commission directive that no state could be given special category status barring the three hill states and the North-East states. Sources at the Centre also rued that the Naidu government was demanding huge funds for building Amravati and the Polavaram project. Finance Minister Jaitley had held several meetings with Telugu Desam Party ministers but without any result. Earlier on Wednesday evening Jaitley held a press conference in New Delhi emphasising that the Centre was committed to giving monetary equivalent of special category status to Andhra Pradesh where it would bear 90% of the funds for centrally sponsored schemes and also grant other financial benefits to the state. Telugu Desam Party leader YS Chowdary who resigned from the Union Cabinet on Thursday ruled out the possibility of his outfit breaking away from the National Democratic Alliance despite their differences on granting Andhra Pradesh special category status PTI reported.Chowdary who was the minister of state for science and technology and earth sciences and his TDP colleague Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju resigned from their positions in the Union Cabinet on Thursday. They met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and handed in their resignations on Thursday evening.Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday announced that Telugu Desam Party leaders would resign from the Union Cabinet hours after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the state could only get a special package not special category status.Chowdary on Thursday compared the decision to an unfortunate divorce and said the two TDP leaders had to resign from their Cabinet positions because of unavoidable circumstances . He clarified that the party will continue to be part of the NDA but no leader will take up any ministerial position at the Centre. We are stepping down as ministers but our president Chandrababu Naidu has said we will continue to be part of the NDA he told reporters. When they are in responsible positions they will have to balance such things and during the process of balancing they will have to face such situations. Ashok Gajapathi Raju said Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated unscientifically. Those who did it say this even today and it needs corrective action he said. That is what we are requesting now. Aviation Minister and TDP MP Ashok Gajapathi Raju s resignation letter to PM Narendra Modi pic.twitter.com/DXFbagSzWs ANI (@ANI) March 8 2018 With 16 MPs in the Lok Sabha the Telugu Desam Party is the NDA s third-largest constituent in the Lower House and its only southern ally.The TDP s decision came after weeks of protests by legislators from Andhra Pradesh demanding special category status for their state. The Budget Session of the Parliament has been repeatedly adjourned over their demand. The lawmakers had also accused the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government of not allocating enough funds for Andhra Pradesh in the Union Budget this year.States with special category status are entitled to higher funds from the Centre than other states. Although Andhra Pradesh does not qualify for the additional funds former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had promised five years of special category status to Andhra Pradesh after its bifurcation. Although the BJP had said it would extend the special status to 10 years this has yet to happen.