Telugu Desam Party

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP; lit. 'Party of the Telugu Land') is an Indian Telugu regional political party with influence in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. It was founded by the former chief minister of Andhra Pradesh N. T. Rama Rao (N.T.R.) on 29 March 1982 and has focused on supporting Telugu speakers. The party has won a five-time majority in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly and has emerged as the most successful political outfit in the state's history. It is currently the ruling party in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly.

From 1 September 1995, the TDP was led by N. T. Rama Rao's son-in-law and the former chief minister of Andhra Pradesh Nara Chandra Babu Naidu as national president of the party. The headquarters of the party is called N. T. R. Bhavan, which is located at Mangalagiri, Andhra Pradesh.

Ideology and symbolism
The Telugu Desam Party follows a pro-Telugu ideology. It was founded as an alternative to the Congress hegemony, by emphasizing Telugu regional pride and serving as the party for farmers, backward castes and middle-class people. Since the 1990s, it has followed an economically liberal policy that has been seen as pro-business and pro-development.

The TDP uses yellow as the background colour for its flag, with a hut, wheel and plough symbol in the foreground. The party's electoral symbol is bicycle.

Health insurance scheme
Since 2014, every active member has been eligible for a life insurance policy of ₹2 lakh to be paid to their family in cases of death or permanent total disability, such as the loss of two limbs of eyes, due to accidents, with additional payouts of ₹5,000 per child (up to two) for educational costs. Active members are also reimbursed for up to ₹50,000 to cover hospital treatment from such accidents.

N. T. Rama Rao era (1983–1995)


As a film actor, Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (NTR) is a well-known name not only to the Telugu people but across the country. On 18 November 1977, near Diviseema in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, the sea became turbulent and the Pralaya cyclone that crossed the coast caused great destruction to the villages. Thousands of people lost their lives in Horugali and Rakasi waves. The rotting bodies were mass cremated. Officially 14,204 people and unofficially about 50,000 lost their lives in the devastation caused by this typhoon. About 20 thousand acres of crops were damaged. Apart from this, property damage is also estimated to be in crores. People still get excited when they remember that Diviseema was flooded. Film actor NTR, who was shocked by the situation at that time, took the support of the entire film industry by saying that he should stand by the people of Divisea. NTR came to streets and begged everyone to help the Diviseema people. The money donated by people was used to rehabilitate the people of Diviseema.

TDP party was founded thinking that we should stand by the people of the state who are struggling with many such problems and put a political party to stand by the people. The party was formed on 29 March 1982 and contested the 1983 elections. The people of Andhra Pradesh, who were fed up with the Congress government which had been ruling for 36 years, gave a great victory to the TDP party in the 1983 elections. On 9 January 1983, NTR was sworn in as the 7th chief minister of Andhra Pradesh.

On 16 August 1984, when NTR went to America for the operation, Nadendla Bhaskara Rao, one of the MLAs of the TDP party, took the oath of office with the Governor along with his MLAs as the Chief Minister. On 16 September 1984, NTR along with his MLAs went to Delhi and held a march and dharna against the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Then NTR was once again sworn in as the chief minister.

Telangana Faction (2014–present)
After the formation of Telangana, TDP, in alliance with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), fought the 2014 Legislative Assembly election. TDP won 15 seats in the newly formed Telangana Legislative Assembly. TDP also won a Lok Sabha seat from Malkajgiri Lok Sabha constituency in the simultaneously held 2014 Indian General Election.

In the 2016 Hyderabad civic polls, TDP won one Councillor seat out of 150 seats. In the 2018 Telangana Legislative Assembly election, TDP won two seats in the 119-member state Assembly, both the seats in Khammam district. It had contested the 2018 assembly elections in an alliance with Indian National Congress and other parties under the Praja Kutami.

After the bifurcation, the party created two separate state units for both Telugu states. L. Ramana was appointed as the first president of the Telangana unit of TDP in 2015 and served till 19 July 2021. In July 2021, Telangana TDP appointed Bakkani Narasimhulu as the president.

In November 2022, Kasani Gnaneshwar Mudiraj, a former MLC and BC leader, was appointed as the president of Telangana TDP by N. Chandrababu Naidu. Kasani, who served as the MLC from undivided Andhra Pradesh, has served as the national president of Mudiraj Mahasabha and had a good hold in the BC community. Under his leadership, the party sees revival in the state and has started actively participating in various public gatherings and rallies in Telangana.

However, Mudiraj resigned as Telangana TDP president and joined BRS on 30 October 2023, after TDP supremo N. Chandrababu Naidu announced that the party would not contest the Telangana polls. The party's Telangana unit has been left leaderless since then. The party also announced it would also not contest seats in the 2024 Indian General Election in Telangana, but would remain part of the NDA.

Activities
On 21 December 2022, the party organized a large public gathering in Khammam district of Telangana to re-energize the party cadre. It was attended by TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and TTDP president Kasani Gnaneshwar Mudiraj. A huge crowd attended the gathering held at the Sardar Patel Stadium in Khammam. While addressing the gathering, Chandrababu Naidu appealed to those who quit the party to join other political parties to return to regain the party's past glory. After 2018, it was the first time that TDP organized a show of strength in Telangana.

On 27 April 2024, Gedela Srinubabu was appointed as TDP state general secretary and former MLA Kondapalli Appala Naidu as TDP's parliamentary wing coordinator. Both campaigned for job opportunities for youngsters by supporting the National Democratic Alliance candidates in the 2024 Indian general election.

Lok Sabha electoral performance
The Telugu Desam Party has had a significant presence in the Lok Sabha elections since its formation in 1982. In its first election in 1984, the party made a debut by winning 30 out of 42 seats in Andhra Pradesh. Over the years, TDP's performance in the Lok Sabha elections has fluctuated. In the 1989 elections, the party's influence slightly waned but it remained a key player in the state's politics.

N. T. Rama Rao served as the chairperson of the National Front, a coalition of non-Congress parties in the late 1980s. The TDP saw a resurgence in the 1996 and 1999 elections, forming alliances with national parties. N. Chandrababu Naidu played a crucial role as the convenor of the United Front, a coalition of non-BJP and non-Congress parties in the mid-1990s.

During the late 1990s, TDP leader G. M. C. Balayogi served as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha from 1998 to 2002. The party played a crucial role in supporting the Janata Dal coalition government and was instrumental in the formation of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as Prime Minister. The party's alliance with the BJP was pivotal in securing the necessary majority for the NDA.

The TDP's fortunes declined in the 2004 and 2009 elections, but it improved it's seat count in 2014, winning 16 seats in alliance as part of the NDA. However, in the 2019 elections, TDP faced a major setback, winning only 3 seats amidst strong competition from other parties in the state. After the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014, the Lok Sabha seats were divided between the newly formed state of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, leaving behind 25 seats in Andhra Pradesh and 17 seats in Telangana. In the recent 2024 election, the party, part of the NDA, managed to win 16 seats, playing a key role in the formation of the Third Modi ministry.