Ministers from Telangana and Seemandhra attend AP CM's dinner

HYDERABAD: For the first time in over a month after the Congress high command announced its decision to divide the state, Andhra Pradesh's ministers from both sides of the regional divide came together here tonight for a dinner hosted by state Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy.

However, Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha and senior ministers from Telangana like K Jana Reddy, Ponnala Lakshmaiah and Danam Nagender stayed away from the occasion which was held in honour of the 14th Finance Commission Chairman Y V Reddy.

There has been a lot of bad blood between ministers from Telangana and coastal Andhra-Rayalaseema regions ever since the Congress announced its decision to split the state.

The ministers from the Telangana region have accused the Chief Minister of leading the ongoing agitation in coastal Andhra-Rayalaseema for a "united" state.

Some senior ministers from the region had even lodged a complaint with the Congress high command against the Chief Minister for extending "tacit support" to the "united" AP agitation.

Though Reddy had been meeting his cabinet colleagues from coastal Andhra-Rayalaseema almost daily, but ministers from Telangana had stayed away from him.

Tonight, ministers Geeta Reddy, D K Aruna, P Sudershan Reddy, N Uttam Kumar Reddy and Mukesh Goud came to the chief minister's camp residence for dinner.

"No politics were discussed," a senior minister said, after coming out of the camp residence.