Date:03/03/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/03/03/stories/2008030364760100.htm

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TRS MPs to quit Lok Sabha today

Special Correspondent

Party holds a rally after day-long dharna in Delhi; MLAs, MLCs to quit tomorrow

KCR urges Congress MPs to also resign their seats
Accuses Congress of ’ditching’ TRS

- PTI Photo

Making his voice heard: TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao speaking at the dharna in New Delhi on Sunday.

NEW DELHI: Charging the Congress-led UPA government with “betrayal” of the issue of carving out a separate Telangana, the Telangana Rashtra Samiti on Sunday declared that its MPs, MLAs and MLCs would resign from Monday onwards.

The decision was announced by TRS chief K. Chandrasekhar Rao at a rally here that was attended among others by the party MPs, MLAs, MLCs and party sympathisers.

The rally came at the end of a day-long dharna at Jantar Mantar here.

Appeal to Cong. MPs

Urging Congress MPs to also quit for the cause of Telangana, Mr Rao said he and his colleagues would resign in the Lok Sabha before the question hour on Monday.

This would be followed by the resignation of 16 TRS MLAs and MLCs from the Andhra Pradesh Assembly the next day.

The MPs who will resign include, besides Mr Rao himself, Vinod Kumar, Madhusudan Reddy and Redya Naik.

Speaking in Telugu, Mr Rao said Congress president Sonia Gandhi had supported the cause of Telangana but after coming to power at the Centre, the party that had contested elections in the State along with the TRS, had “ditched” them.

Mr Rao, who was a Union Minister, had stepped down about over a year ago in protest over the issue.

He had also resigned his Karimnagar Lok Sabha seat, which he later won in the byelection on the statehood plank.

Seeking a quick solution to the issue, Mr Rao warned the Congress and the Central government over a month ago that if “nothing” was done, he and his MPs would resign.