Hyderabad: Close on the heels of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) concluding its party membership drive, ally Jana Sena Party (JSP) is preparing to commence its own membership drive, ThePrint has learnt. The proposal, JSP sources said, is that new members will be entitled to accident insurance and a slew of other benefits.
The membership drive is open to party supporters in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu, and overseas.
Under the current membership drive, an individual has to pay a fee of Rs 400 to be inducted into the party or renew an existing membership. The one-time fee has been reduced, compared to Rs 500 in 2024.
Benefits for party members include an accident insurance settlement (or insurance cover) of Rs 5 lakh per worker, Rs 2 lakh for any disability on account of any grievous injury due to a mishap, Rs 50,000 for any sudden hospitalisation of a member, and legal support for members against whom politically motivated cases are filed by opposition party members.
The joining fee is treated as a premium and also used for other party activities and insurance claims are settled by the party after members or the family submit the required documents.
Founded by actor-politician K. Pawan Kalyan in 2014, the JSP has been at the forefront of introducing the novelty factor not just to augment membership and bolster support for political campaigns but also to increase voter engagement and build support amongst its constituents in many regions of Andhra Pradesh where its competitors fared better in previous elections. From missed call campaigns for specific issues and target groups, to the Janasena Tarangam campaign, where people were called to convey the party’s ideology and the party manifesto in detail to the public, the party has used digital technology to broaden its support base.
“All new members will be added through the newly-launched Astra mobile application through which all new members can enrol within India. We only need the members’ voter ID and Aadhar card for initiating the process” JSP leader Sandeep Panchakarla told ThePrint. The app will also track member involvement and participation in various initiatives, he said.
The first phase of the membership will commence from 26 February and continue for two weeks, while the second phase is expected to commence after the party’s foundation day on 14 March.
In 2024, the JSP had enrolled a little over 15 lakh individuals as its members. Through the current multi-phase membership drive, it hopes to take its total membership count to 25 lakh. Initiating this drive by contributing Rs two crore last week, party president Pawan Kalyan announced that his cadre would be categorised into three categories based on the nature of support and activity: Udyami, Sadhak, and Pradhata.
Once the membership drive is concluded it is estimated that a third of Andhra Pradesh’s populace would be members either of the Jana Sena or Telugu Desam. According to the 2011 census, the current regions of Andhra Pradesh are home to 4.93 crore people, and together the parties would account for 1.35 crore members.
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Telugu Desam’s membership drive
The Chandrababu Naidu-led TDP concluded its membership drive after adding 1.19 crore members in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Andaman and Nicobar islands, party sources confirmed to The Print. Of these, 97 lakh members are below the age of 60.
The one-time membership fee was Rs 100.
Party members will also be entitled to accident insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh, besides education free of cost for children of deceased members, from Class 6th to 12th through the party-run NT Rama Rao Trust.
The TDP has also promised healthcare treatment to members at subsidised rates in hospitals part of the trust’s panel.
“We were the first party in India to digitise the entire membership process way back in 2012. From creating groups on Orkut, Facebook, and now on Instagram, we have a completely tech-enabled process of keeping in touch with our members, encouraging them to participate in programmes, and also assessing their performance in party activities,” said Hari Krishna, head of the TDP IT wing in Telangana. The party disclosed that it settled accident and related claims of 5,966 members in the last ten years.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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