Venkaiah slams Congress on Telangana issue

'BJP would like concerns of Seemandhra people to be addressed while dividing the State'

Senior BJP leaders M. Venkaiah Naidu, Bandaru Dattatreya and party Statepresident G. Kishan Reddy at State executive committee meeting at Kompallyin Hyderabad on Monday. Photo: G.Ramakrishna

Senior BJP leader M. Venkaiah Naidu slammed the Congress party on Telangana issue for allowing its leaders, including Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, to defy the CWC decision.

Addressing the BJP State executive committee meeting at Kompally near here on Monday, he reiterated that the BJP would like the concerns of Seemandhra people to be addressed while dividing the State. He said there was no conflict between the demand for justice to Seemandhra people and supporting formation of Telangana state.

He said the BJP was committed to creation of Telangana state with 10 districts and Hyderabad as its capital. The party central leadership favoured formation of Telangana in 2006 after studying the issue in depth. But the Congress, after entering into alliance with the TRS in 2004, took a decision after nine years, just because elections were round the corner.

Mr. Naidu ridiculed the statement of Congress leader Digvijay Singh that the party gave freedom to Mr. Kiran Reddy to air his views and said the Congress had no moral right to criticise the BJP on Telangana issue.

Regarding alliances with other parties, he said the central leadership would take a decision based on two major criteria-- the benefit to the BJP and the anti-Congress stand of the alliance partner. He also asked the State leaders to not talk about electoral alliances.

He said a wave in favour of BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi was sweeping across the country and urged each party man to visit 100 families, enrol 100 new voters and create 100 volunteers.

State BJP president G. Kishan Reddy demanded an answer from Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on how the government resolution was passed with a voice vote rejecting the A.P. Reorganisation Bill, 2013 in the Assembly after the Centre and CWC took a decision for dividing the State.

He urged the party workers and leaders to fully gear up for the coming general elections and said that shortly top BJP leaders, including Mr. Modi, party’s national president Rajnath Singh and Sushma Swaraj would tour the State.