Pranab asks unrelenting Telangana ministers to withdraw resignations

NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today reportedly promised "some good news" on Telangana and asked his party ministers from that region in Andhra Pradesh to withdraw their resignations, but they were not in an immediate mood to relent.

State Information and Tourism Minister Geeta Reddy, who led a delegation of 13 ministers who have quit in protest against Centre putting the Telangana on the backburner, told reporters after a meeting with Mukherjee that they would discuss his request among themselves first before taking a decision on their resignations.

"Pranab Mukherjee asked us to withdraw our resignations and assured us that there will be good news on Telangana issue in the near future. We are also waiting for some special news on the issue," Reddy said.

"We will discuss it (request to withdraw resignations) among ourselves. Our aim is not being in posts or power, but meeting the expectations of the people of Telangana. Their aspirations is to have a separate state and they are longing for it. This is the right time to have Telangana," she added.

Her cabinet colleague and Water Resources Minister Ponnala Lakshmaiah said the Ministers conveyed the ground situation in Telangana, especially Hyderabad.

"We impressed upon Mukherjee to take steps to clear the doubts of separate statehood created by Home Minister P Chidambaram's statement on December 23, which gave an impression that Telangana was taking a backseat," he said.