Parties Condemn YSRCP's Walkout Over Telangana Bill

All political parties, including the Congress, condemned the YSR Congress Party for staging a walkout over the Telangana Bill.

Speaking after the YSRCP MLAs, led by Y S Vijaya Lakshmi, staged a walkout from the State Legislative Assembly on Friday, Finance Minister Anam Ramnarayana Reddy said that it was "illogical" to stage a walkout over the same issue - twice.

He said that it is the YSRCP leadership that asked the Centre to divide the state under Article 3.

"However, the same party is now opposing the Centre's decision and blaming the Congress party for the state's bifuration," he said.

He described the YSRCP's decision as a "political drama" aimed at misleading the people.

TDP member Payyavula Keshav claimed that it was late Y S Rajasekhara Reddy who strengthened the Telangana movement.

"He led a delegation of 42 Congress legislators to the Congress High Command before 2004 elections demanding statehood for Telangana," Payyavula said.

He alleged that the YSRCP is "covertly" supporting the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh although it was "enacting dramas" to prove its stand on Samaikyandhra.

Keshav said that the YSRCP knows well that the Telangana Bill would be subjected to voting at any time.

However, it was staging a walkout to escape from the process of voting.

He said that the YSRCP had only 17 members in the House while Vijayamma had been wrongly claiming that her party had 22 MLAs.

TRS member K T Rama Rao strongly condemned YSRCP's demand for voting on Telangana Bill.

He said that the President of India had sent the Bill only to seek Assembly's view, and it doesn't mean that the opinion be expressed only through voting.

He admitted that YSR had sown the seed for bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh even before the TRS became a political force.

He said that the YSR forged an alliance with the TRS knowing well that the latter was fighting with a single agenda of achieving statehood for the region.

Legislative Affairs Minister S Sailajanath tried to defend YSR by claiming that although the late CM agreed to abide by the decision of the Congress High Command, he had made it clear that the concerns and apprehensions of the people must be addressed before taking a final decision on Telangana.

He accused the TRS of causing damage to the interests of the people of the Telangana region.

These comments triggered protests from the TRS members who rushed to the Speaker's podium and demanded an unconditional apology from the minister.

They called off their protest at the podium on the advice of the Speaker.

Reacting to these comments, KTR said that Sailajanath spoke "more like the convener of Seemandhra Legislators Forum rather than as the Legislative Affairs Minister". (INN)