The Congress camp in Andhra Pradesh is abuzz with activity with Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy and State party president Botsa Satyanarayana stepping in to avert a possible crisis in the wake of threat by legislators from Telangana to quit their posts in support of a separate State.
Following a directive from the Congress high command to defuse the situation, the Chief Minister swung into action and held talks with Ministers K. Jana Reddy and Sunita Laxma Reddy among others.
The PCC president too spoke to ministers P. Sudarshan Reddy, Basavaraj Saraiah and some MLAs from Telangana, who have threatened to quit on Monday if their demands are not met.
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Both Mr. Kiran and Mr. Botsa reportedly tried to prevail upon the Telangana leaders not to act in haste and wait for the party high command’s decision on the contentious Statehood issue.
But the Ministers are understood to have told the Chief Minister and the PCC chief that they were under “tremendous pressure” from all sections in the region to step down from their posts as the Centre continued to defer its decision on Telangana.
Accordingly, Mr. Botsa promised to take up the issue with the Congress high command.
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“This is a sensitive issue and everyone should think over the resignations and not take hasty decisions, Mr. Botsa is understood to have told his colleagues.
But there was some relief for both Mr. Kiran and Mr. Bosta as not all ministers and MLAs from Telangana are ready to resign from their posts.
At least half-a-dozen Ministers, including Deputy Chief Minister Damodar Rajanarasimha, were averse to the idea of putting in their papers besides 20 MLAs, Congress sources said.
The PCC president will hold another round of talks with Ministers from Telangana and other legislators later in the day and seek to placate them, the sources said.