BJP slams Congress on Telangana, but will support statehood bill

HYDERABAD: Slamming the Congress for enacting a "political drama" over the Telangana issue, senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu today asserted his party would certainly support the statehood bill in Parliament but with certain riders.

BJP would support the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill "without compromising on the basic principles" and only after securing "justice to all" (regions), he said here.

Lashing out at Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh for his statement that the Bill, which stipulates creation of Telangana state, would get Parliament's nod if the BJP co-operated, Naidu said "You never consult...you want to insult. What is this political tamasha (drama)?" Addressing the state executive committee meeting of BJP this afternoon, the Rajya Sabha MP said the Congress had no right to question his party over the statehood issue.

"The Prime Minister proposes and the (AP) Chief Minister rejects. The Congress delayed a decision on Telangana for ten years calculating votes and percentages that will accrue to it. Is it a party at all?"

While 1,000 youths lost their lives in Telangana for the cause of a separate state, 350 died in Seemandhra for a united state, the former BJP President said.

"Is not the Congress responsible for this? Now they are building temples for Sonia Gandhi and hailing her as the mother of Telangana. What is this tamasha going on in the state?" the former Union Minister asked.

Referring to Singh's remarks that they permitted the Andhra Pradesh Congress leaders to "defeat" the Telangana Bill in the State Legislature, Naidu said that there could not be a more ridiculous claim than this. Asserting that the BJP, which favours creation of smaller states, would not go back on Telangana, with ten districts and Hyderabad as the capital, Naidu, however, wanted the Centre to address the concerns of both the regions.

"Our demand is that justice should be done to all regions. Without compromising on the basic principles, we are ready to support the Bill (in Parliament)," he said. State BJP President G Kishan Reddy and other leaders attended the meeting.