Five-time Member of Parliament from Guntur, Rayapati Sambasiva Rao resigned from the primary membership of the Congress signalling an end to a more than three-decade association with the party.
Mr. Rao had resigned as MP in the last week of July, immediately after the Congress Working Committee’s nod for creation of Telangana.
Mr. Rao faxed his resignation to the Party Office in New Delhi on Friday.
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Speaking to The Hindu from New Delhi, Mr. Rao said: “I am deeply pained by the developments since Thursday. The Congress said that it would send a delegation of the core committee to Seemandhrato address the people’s concerns. I will plunge into the agitation directly and will fight along with NGOs.’’
Tight-lipped about future plans
The senior MP, who has enjoyed a warm relationship with the Gandhi family, was guarded about his next move, though he did mention that the Bharatiya Janata Party could have an advantage in the Coastal Andhra region if Narendra Modi spoke in favour of a united State.
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The Telugu Desam Party was striving for an alliance with the BJP, he said but hastened to add, “this does not mean that I am joining I have not made up my mind to join either the TDP or the BJP.’’
The senior MP had in the recent past aired his bitterness over being denied a berth in the Union Cabinet. His frustration piled up when he was overlooked for the post of Chairman of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) and since then Mr. Rao has been maintaining a distance from party activities. Ever since the Telagana issue cropped up again, Mr. Rao has been raising his voice against the bifurcation of the State.