AP Cong leaders threaten to quit over Telangana

HYDERABAD: The T-word has come to haunt Andhra Congress again. The Srikrishna Committee is due to submit its report on the Telangana statehood by this month-end. Telangana Congress leaders, including MPs, MLAs and MLCs, on Sunday issued an ultimatum to the state government demanding withdrawal of all cases registered against agitators in the region by Sunday midnight.

State ministers P Shankar Rao and K Jana Reddy offered to resign if a separate state was not announced on Dec 31. Rajya Sabha MP and Congress Working Committee member K Keshava Rao said party MPs would begin an indefinite fast at the Telangana Martyrs' Memorial if the police cases were not withdrawn.

Rao's reaction came after a two-hour brainstorming meeting with elected representatives of the Congress from Telangana. "Police 'zulum' must end. There is nothing like a small case or a serious case. All cases must be withdrawn unconditionally. Our party alone will give Telangana," Rao said, adding if indications were against the formation of the new state after Dec 31, "we will send our resignations to the party high command."

According to sources, Keshava Rao even suggested that the Telangana legislators would not hesitate to resign and bring down the Kiran Kumar Reddy government if cases were not withdrawn. At present, 52 of the 156 Congress MLAs in the 294-member assembly are from Telangana.

Rao said: "Our request to the CM made on Dec. 20 for the withdrawal of all cases against students is still pending. Please do not test our patience and force us to think of alternatives."