TDP’s Telangana leaders want party to boycott Jan 6 meeting

HYDERABAD - After the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) decided to boycott the Jan 6 all-party meeting called by Home Minister P. Chidambaram on the Srikrishna committee’s report, leaders of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) from Telangana have also urged the party leadership to stay away.

TDP Telangana Forum, which represents party leaders from the region, Monday called on party chief N. Chandrababu Naidu not to send anybody to the meeting, saying it would serve no purpose.

The party has already decided to send a representative each from Telangana and Andhra-Rayalaseema regions.

The forum headed by senior legislator and former minister Nagam Janardhan Reddy will meet Tuesday to chalk out their future course of action.

R. Prakash Reddy, who was one of the two TDP leaders who attended the meeting called by Chidambaram in January last year before the setting up of the Srikrishna committee, has also demanded that the party should not send any leader to the meeting as it was aimed at sidelining the Telangana issue.

He made the demand when students and other supporters of a Telangana state laid siege to his house in Warangal and urged him to take a clear stand. Prakash Reddy, a member of the state assembly, said he was ready to make any sacrifice including resignation for the sake of a separate Telangana state.

The TRS and the BJP had Sunday decided to boycott the meeting saying Chidambaram’s invitation to two leaders from each party was aimed at provoking difference of opinion on Telangana and to drag the issue.

The central government has called the meeting of eight recognised parties from Andhra Pradesh before making public the Srikrishna committee’s report.

The five-member panel, which looked into the demands for and against a separate Telangana state, submitted its report Dec 30.

Meanwhile, the ruling Congress party has decided to send MP K. Sambasiva Rao (Andhra) and state legislator Uttam Kumar Reddy (Telangana) to the meeting.

President of the state unit of the party D. Srinivas announced the names though a section of leaders from Telangana were against attending the meeting.

The Communist Party of India (CPI) and Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) have already sent letters to Chidambaram seeking more time to study the report. Their leaders said it would not be possible for them to study the entire report and give their opinion in one meeting.

The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) and Lok Satta were still undecided on attending the meeting.