TRS chief KC Rao plays safe, ducks queries on merger with Congress

HYDERABAD: Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao, whose Telangana Rashtra Samithi spearheaded the campaign for statehood to Telangana, has ruled out merging his party with Congress until Parliament passes a bill to form the state.

"Right now, that question doesn't arise... I will not be able to say a single word on this (merger with Congress)," KCR - as Rao is popularly known - told ET in his first interview after the plan to grant statehood to Telangana was revealed by the UPA government last week. He also refused to talk about electoral alliances till Telangana was formed.

KCR had in the past indicated that he would merge his party with the Congress if the UPA government made Telangana a separate state.

He assuaged fears of businessmen from the Seemandhra region, saying that they had nothing to worry about. "We will welcome investors with a red carpet because we need employment for our youth," KCR said.

He said the move to make Hyderabad a joint capital of both Seemandhra and Telangana did not make sense. "Such proposals are senseless, baseless and meaningless."