Congress members of Parliament from Telangana region are back in focus with Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) president K Chandrashekhar Rao making a public offer to them to field them in the next lok Sabha elections on his party ticket if they resign from the Congress and join his party.
Rao, known as KCR, met senior Congress leader from Telangana region K Keshav Rao at his residence on Sunday and offered his party’s ticket from either Secunderabad or adjoining Malkajgiri lok Sabha constituency.
Keshav Rao confirming the offer said, “I think he is right when he says that all the pro-Telangana leaders joining the TRS will strengthen the Telangana movement.
We will take our decision at the right time”. Keshav Rao was among several others who dropped clear indication that they were heading towards exit in the Congress.
S Rajaiah, the Congress MP from Warangal said that he was ready to make any sacrifice for Telangana as the party had failed in taking a timely decision. “I am now tired of raising Telangana demand in the Congress. The issue of Telangana has reached a stage of now or never. If we are not able to achieve it now, we will never be able to have a separate Telangana State,” he said.
“I will take a decision on my future keeping in view the aspirations and wishes of the people of my region,” he said.
“All the MPs from Telangana region, rising above their party lines should raise the issue of Telangana in the next session of Parliament. Not only the MPs, but Ministers and MlAs should also fight for Telangana,” he said.
Another Congress MP from Telangana G Vivekanand (Peddapally constituency) was busy consulting his supporters in the Congress on his next course of action. He met his followers and supporters in Dharampuri town of Karimnagar on Monday against the backdrop of speculation that he along with another MP from Karimnagar Ponnam Prabhkar had made up their minds to quit the Congress and join the TRS as they had lost hope of the Congress high command granting Statehood to Telangana.
In another related development, Gangula Kamlakar Reddy, TDP MlA from Karimnagar announced that he was going to join the TRS. Kamlakar said that he took the decision as there
was no freedom in TDP to fight for Telangana.
Meanwhile, TRS president K Chandrashekhar Rao met the party leaders from Karimnagar district on the issue of admitting TDP MlA and others into the party.