Date:03/01/2005 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2005/01/03/stories/2005010305430400.htm

Andhra Pradesh

TRS Minister threatens to confront YSR

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, JAN. 2. The Technical Education Minister, N. Narasimha Reddy, has threatened that the six TRS Ministers in the State Cabinet would confront the Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, if fresh information which has come to light about injustice done to Telangana is correct.

He was referring to information about injustice to Telangana published by various service organisations at a convention organised here on Sunday by the Joint Action Committee of Telangana Employees, Teachers and Workers Associations. Four other TRS Ministers -- T. Harish Rao, A. Chandrasekhar, S. Santosh Reddy and G. Vijayarama Rao -- also participated.

Mr. Reddy asked the leaders of the associations to prepare a memorandum based on their findings for presentation to the Chief Minister. He also asked them to gather more information about injustice to Telangana so that they could be rectified.

Officials under fire

He said "some Government officials'' were unscrupulous. They had misled the Government by tampering with figures to suit their regions. "The officials belonging to Telangana did not have the guts like them."

He warned the Government and the official machinery against repeating the injustice done to the region during the TDP regime. If the late Chief Minister, N.T. Rama Rao, had taken a bold step by issuing GO 610 for the benefit of Telangana, Chandrababu Naidu undermined it and incurred the wrath of the people of the region.

"Whoever does injustice to the people of Telangana will face the same consequences as Mr. Naidu."

Going into reasons why the TRS did not take seriously the House Committee recommendations on GO 610 during the TDP regime, he said they were a "mass of lapses."

Monthly meetings

Mr. Reddy called for meetings with service associations of Telangana every month to update information. The TRS Ministers would stand by them and if necessary even resign. There was no need for them to remain in the Government if they were not of use to the region.

The Minister was requested to tone down his speech by Mr. Harish Rao who was sharing the dais but to no avail. Mr. Rao passed on slips to Mr. Reddy twice. Mr. Reddy created another flutter by exhorting the crowd to give full-throated "Jai Telangana'' slogans "so that they could be heard by the Chief Minister."

The other Ministers outlined the political developments in Delhi which were favourable to the formation of Telangana State.