Even though the Congress high command is learnt to have almost decided to form Telangana state, ministers from Seemandhra region are still confident that AP would remain intact.
They say even if the AICC leadership announces its decision in favour of T-state, there would be several practical hurdles in the way of implementing it at the Union government level. Sake Sailajanath said, “The decision which will be announced by party leadership will only be the decision our party, but not that of the UPA. We believe amendment is necessary to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh. At this juncture, it is very hard to amend the Constitution,” he said.
He put the blame for the Congress high command’s reported resolve to form the T-state on the good performance of the TDP in the ongoing panchayat polls.
“Had people voted for our party-supported candidates in the panchayat polls, the situation would have been different. But, the TDP, which has been advocating bifurcation of the state, has got majority village panchayats. Because of this too, our party high command has decided to accord statehood to Telangana,” he said.
Ministers plan quitting
Some of the ministers from Seemandhra are contemplating to quit after the Congress decision in favour of Telangana.
This proposal was discussed when ministers, including Ganta Srinivasa Rao, TG Venkatesh, met at the secretariat on Monday. However, in the wake of the warning issued by the party general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad not to resort to any extreme step, how many will really resign is not certain.
Azad spoke to the Seemandhra ministers over phone on Sunday and Monday and asked them to fall in line. Meanwhile, ministers from either side of the divide have decided to undertake Delhi yatra on Tuesday to exert pressure on their high command.
Seemandhra leaders, including Sake Sailajanath and Ananta Venkatarami Reddy will be leaving for Delhi on Tuesday morning along with chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy. T-ministers K Jana Reddy, Ponnala Lakshmaiah and P Sudarshan Reddy, along with deputy chief minister C Damodar Rajanarasimaha, will be present in the national capital on the same day.