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TDP MLAs deny joining Congress

HYDERABAD: Three Telugu Desam MLAs -- Yella Reddy, Kandula Narayan Reddy and Linga Reddy -- denied reports in a section of media that they were planning to switch over to Congress and charged the latter with deliberately creating confusion.

Addressing a press conference along with senior leaders, the MLAs said that worried over the wafer-thin majority obtained by Congress in elections, Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy was using every method from offering allurements to foisting false cases to induct MLAs and others into the party. This was proved in the cases of party MLAs, N. Prasanna Kumar Reddy and T. V. Rama Rao. But TDP MLAs were determined to foil his attempts, they added.

Mr. Linga Reddy alleged that he had even received a life threatening SMS and had asked the cellular service company to trace the sender after which he would lodge a complaint with the police.

The senior leaders, P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju, G. Muddukrishnama Naidu and M. Narsimhulu said another MLA, Palle Raghunath Reddy too has denied the report of his joining Congress and decided to sue the TV channel which has reported it. They alleged that the Chief Minister was spending more time in luring Opposition MLAs than on governance.

They said they would soon approach President Pratibha Patil to lodge a complaint against Karnataka for building 55 barrages upstream of Krishna river affecting the interests of the State.

This issue among others like price rise, scrapping of metro rail, acid attacks on women, corruption in NREGA and proposed restrictions on media during Assembly proceedings were discussed at the Telugu Desam Legislature Party meeting on Thursday.

Mr. Raju said it was unfortunate that the government was planning to impose restrictions on media and even stop live telecast of Assembly proceedings. It was during TDP rule that live telecast was introduced as a measure of accountability and transparency.

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