Pawan Kalyan Signals Support for Lokesh as Naidu’s Successor

December 25, 2025

It appears that Jana Sena Party chief and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan is mentally preparing himself to accept his Cabinet colleague and TDP general secretary Nara Lokesh as the probable successor to Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.

While Chandrababu Naidu has not publicly revealed his long-term succession plans, it is increasingly evident that he is grooming his son Lokesh to take charge both within the party and the government. Lokesh has already begun playing a significant role in administration, directly and indirectly, strengthening his position within the ruling setup.

What is drawing attention now is that Pawan Kalyan too appears to be extending tacit support to Lokesh as the future chief ministerial face of the ruling coalition.

At a recent event in Amaravati, where appointment letters were distributed to newly recruited police constables, both Naidu and Pawan Kalyan were present. Lokesh, however, was in Visakhapatnam, where he signed an MoU related to the proposed Aero Defence City project by GMR and Manas Trust. Despite Lokesh’s absence, Pawan Kalyan publicly remarked that his presence was “missed,” a comment that quickly became a talking point in political circles.

More recently, during a Jana Sena Party leaders’ meeting, Pawan Kalyan repeatedly stressed that the TDP-JSP-BJP coalition should remain in power for the next 10 to 15 years. He clarified that this vision was not about weakening Jana Sena or strengthening another party, but about first consolidating democracy and governance in Andhra Pradesh.

Political analysts point out that Pawan Kalyan, currently 54 years old, would be in his mid-to-late 60s if such a long-term coalition plan materialises—effectively ruling out any immediate claim to the chief minister’s post. This has led many within both Jana Sena and the TDP to believe that Pawan Kalyan is playing a carefully calculated “safe political game”, prioritising stability within the coalition while enjoying significant influence and authority in the present government.

However, this approach has not gone down well with sections of the Jana Sena cadre, who feel that repeated assertions about long-term coalition rule indirectly sideline Pawan Kalyan’s own chief ministerial aspirations.

Aware of this internal unease, Pawan Kalyan reportedly used the Monday meeting with party leaders to explain his position. He is said to have made it clear that given the party’s current strength, Jana Sena cannot independently come to power in Andhra Pradesh without aligning with a larger political force.

Overall, Pawan Kalyan appears content operating within a political “safe zone,” ensuring minimal personal and coalition risk—even if that stance risks alienating a section of his core supporters in the long run.

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