HYDERABAD: TRS leader and MLA T Harish Rao has challenged Vijayawada MP Lagadapati Rajagopal to contest the coming by-election for the Banswada Assembly seat which was vacated by Pocharam Srinivas Reddy demanding a Telangana state.
The TRS leader, who led the Vanta-Varpu programme at Hitec City along with his family members and party MP Vijayashanti, condemned Rajagopal's claim and said no one was ready to support the Samaikyandhra plank in the Telangana region. "If Rajagopal wants to seek a fresh mandate, he should contest the Banswada by-election where costal Andhra settlers are in large number," Harish Rao said and challenged that if the Samaikyandhra leader even retained his deposit, they would stop raising the Jai Telangana slogan.
All sections of the Telangana society, including IT professionals, took part in Vanta-Varpu programme on Sunday, Harish Rao said and termed it the starting point for their new phase of agitation. The tremendous response the programme got should serve as an eyopener to the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre and force it to begin the process of creating Telangana state, he said.
If the Centre continued to delay its decision it should be ready to face the heat of the movement, he warned and claimed that the people of Telangana forced the T Congress leaders to join the ongoing movement.