K Keshava Rao Praises KCR's "Commitment"

Former PCC President K Keshava Rao on Saturday claimed that it was TRS chief K Chandrasekhar Rao's commitment towards the Telangana cause that drove him and two other Congress MPs - G Vivek and Manda Jagannatham - to join the Telangana Rashtra Samithi.

Talking to reporters in a meet-the-press program, Keshava Rao praised KCR for trying to mobilise pro-Telangana forces. He said that KCR had even agreed to merge his party with the Congress to achieve statehood for the region.

He calls KCR's commitment towards the cause "exemplary", and said that this was why they decided to join him. However, he admitted that the "car" (TRS election symbol) they were boarding has some defects, and said that they would try to rectify them.

Keshava Rao said that it was meaningless for him and the other MPs to sail with a party that lacked seriousness on the Telangana issue. He said that the Congress would never concede Telangana.

He also disclosed that he had held negotiations with the BJP, which he said is committed to the Telangana cause. However, he said he decided to join the TRS because of its secular credentials.

The former Rajya Sabha MP alleged that one group of Telangana Congress leaders is close to the Congress High Command, creating hurdles for the Telangana cause. He slammed the Central leadership for not taking the Telangana issue seriously.

Nagarkurnool MP Manda Jagannatham complained about the fact that the Congress High Command had spoken to Eluru MP Kavuri Sambasiva Rao when he had threatened to leave the party over the denial of a berth in the Central cabinet, and that it had completely ignored the Telangana MPs when they had threatened to quit over the Telangana issue. Calling this a snub, he said that this proves that the Congress is an anti-Telangana party.

He also alleged that the Congress leadership had insulted deputy chief minister Damodar Raja Narasimha, a Dalit leader.

Peddapalli MP G Vivek claimed that he would pursue the goal of achieving statehood for the Telangana region, and that post aren't important for him. (INN)