After announcing that he would construct a temple for Sonia Gandhi, former Minister Dr. P Shankar Rao on Saturday demanded that the Telangana state be named after Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Addressing a press conference at the Congress Legislature Party here, Dr. Shankar Rao said that the Telangana state has become a reality only due to the decision taken by Sonia Gandhi, and that therefore, as a thanksgiving gesture, the 29th state of the country should be called "Sonia Telangana".
He said he would formally send the request to the Centre in this regard.
Dr. Shankar Rao also predicted that Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy's political career would come to an end by this month-end.
Stating that Kiran Kumar Reddy should have resigned from the post if he was really serious about a united Andhra Pradesh, he said that the Chief Minister was busy making a "samadhi" of the Congress party in the state.
He alleged that the CM has lost his mental balance, and so is making statements to halt the process of Telangana formation.
The former minister also said that it was improper of the CM to have spoken about the state's division in the Rachabanda programme.
He accused Kiran Kumar Reddy of speaking like a "faction leader".
He said that while Sachin Tendulkar would be remembered as a shining star of the country, Kiran Kumar Reddy would be referred to as a blot on Andhra Pradesh in history. (INN)
filed in:Congress, Telangana Formation, P Shankar Rao, N Kiran Kumar Reddy