Mekapati resigns over Telangana

YSR Congress MP from Nellore Mekapati Rajamohan Reddy on Monday announced his resignation from Parliament in protest of the unilateral decision on division of Andhra Pradesh, saying the country is on the boil due to Congress' move on separate statehood issue.

Mekapati told reporters in Hyderabad that he has sent in his resignation letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar. "If she wants me to personally hand over the letter, I will go and give," he added.

The resignation is in protest against the double standards of Congress and TDP and the unilateral decision taken on the division of the state without taking the feelings of the stakeholders into consideration, he said.

The petty mindedness of Congress has opened up many old wounds and the country is on the boil now. We are not against the bifurcation but we are opposing the conduct of Congress, with the tacit support of TDP, which is looking for short-term gains and opened up a Pandora's box, Mekapati alleged.

He charged Congress did not take stakeholders into confidence before taking the decision on creating Telangana from Andhra Pradesh and thus ignored even basic rule of consensus on such an important matter. Any decision taken by the Centre should be agreeable to all concerned and no region should be put to a disadvantage, Mekapati added