Seemandhra MPs meet PM, oppose separate state

With the top Congress leadership appearing to have veered towards creation of Telangana, Congress MPs from rest of Andhra Pradesh opposed any division of the state while a party MP from Telangana region said the government should go ahead with the decision.

The six anti-Telangana MPs, including Union Ministers M M Pallam Raju, K S Rao, Chiranjeevi and D Purandeshwari (all hailing from coastal Andhra) and K Bapiraju and Anantarami Reddy met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in a delegation to push for keeping Andhra Pradesh united.

The MPs told Prime Minister that there would be repercussions not only for the state but also for the entire country if Andhra Pradesh is divided.

Rao said after the meeting that any decision to split the state would create problems. It was not in the interest of the people nor the various regions of Andhra Pradesh, he said.

Talking to reporters, Bapiraju said the delegation told the Prime Minister that formation of Telangana will create problems in many states including Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh where there are demands for separate statehood. He said the PM gave a patient hearing to the leaders.

On the other hand, pro Telangana Congress MP Ponnam Prabhakar told a press conference that there should be no opposition, including from party MPs, to the formation of the separate state as the process of consultation was over.

Now that the party has taken a decision, the leaders from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema should not create any hurdle in the formation of Telangana.

Please play the role of an elder brother and facilitate the creation of Telangana. Why pose obstacles now after three long years of consultations? he said.

Yesterday, there were high-level discussions between the Congress central leadership and the state PCC leadership on the demand for creation of Telangana.

AICC General Secretary incharge of Andhra Pradesh Digivijay Singh and his predecessor Ghulam Nabi Azad had held separate discussions with Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, PCC chief Botsa Satyanarayana and Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha.

The two leaders were understood to have conveyed to the state leadership that the party has made up its mind on the creation of Telangana and it was only a matter of time before it is announced.