Pro-Telangana leaders mount pressure

NEW DELHI/HYDERABAD: After lying low for some time, the pro-Telangana camp on Tuesday mounted pressure threatening resignation by its MPs and MLAs as the Congress party and government appeared to be caught in a cleft on what to do over unrest in the other regions.

Congress MPs from Telangana today wrote letters to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi in which they are understood to have said that any "dilution" of stand on the separate Telangana state will have "serious repercussions".

Some of them are believed to have expressed their willingness to resign like their colleagues from Andhra and Rayalaseema regions.

In Hyderabad, TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao today hit back at those campaigning against the formation of a Telangana state, saying lawmakers from Telangana can also cause a constitutional crisis as over 100 MLAs from the region are ready to quit.

He again warned of a "catastrophe" if the promise of a separate Telangana with Hyderabad as its capital does not materialise and opposed Centre's discussions on the issue with opponents.

The party high command and the government apparently had no immediate steps to lessen the tension despite a two- hour meeting of the Congress Core Group late last night and a series of consultations today.


MPs from Rayalaseema and Coastal Andra Pradesh had meetings with Home Minister P Chidambaram, Law Minister M Veerappa Moily and Political Secretary to Congress president Ahmed Patel to find a way out of the present imbroglio.

They had yesterday claimed that the government would come out with a statement in a day or two to put "everything in order" in Andhra Pradesh.

Party sources said the issue may be discussed by the leadership tomorrow and something may come of it.

However, there was no assurance from the leadership so far on their demand for a statement that would help pacify the sentiments of the people in the areas of Andhra Pradesh other than Telangana.

The MPs who met these leaders included Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, son of late Chief Minister Y S Rajashekhara Reddy, K S Rao and K V P Ramachandra Rao. Union Ministers D Purandraswari and Panabaka Lakshmi were also present.

The refrain of these MPs was that they cannot go back to their constituencies unless the Centre gave a statement mollifying the people in their areas as the situation was "worsening day-by-day".