With a week left for a crucial announcement by the Centre on the statehood issue, Seemandhra and Telangana Congress leaders started making a beeline to New Delhi to put forth their respective views forcefully.
As the action shifted to the national capital, all eyes are on the Seemandhra leaders, who are determined to thwart any move to announce bifurcation of the State. On the other hand, the Telangana Congress leaders plan to stay put in New Delhi to watch the developments.
A large contingent of Seemandhra leaders comprising at least a dozen Ministers and over 50 legislators have left for New Delhi on Sunday. They will be joined by those who have attended “Chintan Shivir” in Jaipur. Convener of Andhra Pradesh Congress Legislators Forum S. Sailajanath is camping in New Delhi to coordinate the appointments along with Rajya Sabha member K. V. P. Ramachandra Rao and Anantapur MP Anantha Venkatarami Reddy.
Leaders asserted that they would not settle for any thing short of united Andhra Pradesh and it would be reflected in the memorandum to be presented to key leaders and Union Ministers during the next three days of their stay in Delhi. Once they return to Hyderabad, the Seemandhra leaders plan to mobilise employees, students and people’s organisations in support of their demand against bifurcation.
On the other hand, the Telangana leaders have begun to watch the movements of their Seemandhra counterparts closely. An emergency meeting of available MLAs and MLCs from Telangana has been convened in CLP on Monday. A team of Telangana Congress legislators are planning to leave for New Delhi tomorrow to hold consultations with their party MPs and Union Ministers.
Meanwhile, Congress MPs from Telangana – Ponnam Prabhakar, Madhu Yaskhi, G.Vivekananda, S.Rajaiah, Gutha Sukhender Reddy, K. Rajagopal Reddy and former CWC member K. Keshava Rao met AICC general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad at Jaipur. Later, they proceeded to Ajmer dargah to offer ‘chaddar’ for the creation of a separate Telangana.
SC/ST Sub-Plan hailed
Meanwhile, the Congress has asked the Central government to consider enacting a national legislation to assure allocation of sufficient resources to the Scheduled Caste Special Component Plan (SCP) and the Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP).
The Congress top brass appreciated the Andhra Pradesh government for giving statutory backing to the funds allocated to SCs/STs in the form of an Act.
The issue figured in the Jaipur declaration adopted by the Congress during its Chintan Shivir that concluded on Sunday.
The Congress leadership wanted the government to come up with a national legislation on the lines of the SC/ST Sub-Plan Act.
