TRS rejects Telangana panel terms

The committee appointed by the Centre to examine the Telangana issue has also been asked to examine the option of a united Andhra Pradesh, prompting those demanding a separate statehood to denounce the panel.

The committee appointed by the Centre to examine the Telangana issue has also been asked to examine the option of a united Andhra Pradesh, prompting those demanding a separate statehood to denounce the panel.

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In Hyderabad, Telangana Rashtra Samiti chief K. Chandrasekhar Rao, who has been spearheading the agitation, said, “The Centre has betrayed us once again.” He directed all his party MPs, MLAs and MLCs to resign immediately.

The seven-point terms of reference have mandated the committee headed by Justice (retd) B.N. Srikrishna to review the developments in Andhra Pradesh since its formation and their impact on the progress and development of the different regions of the state.

The panel will have its first meeting on Saturday, a move aimed at signalling that the panel tasked to firm up a roadmap on the issue would not delay a decision.

A home ministry notification on Friday outlining the terms gave the panel till 31 December, 2010, to submit its report.

The panel has been told to examine the situation in Andhra Pradesh in the context of the two opposing views: carving out Telangana from the state and maintaining the present status of a united Andhra Pradesh.

It will also examine the impact of the developments in the state on different sections of the people such as women, children, students, minorities, other backward classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

The terms of reference said the committee would “consult all sections of the people, especially the political parties” and “identify the key issues that must be addressed while considering the matter”.

The Joint Action Committee of Osmania University students called for a day-long bandh in Telangana on Saturday.

“The terms of reference are totally against (the formation of) Telangana. The Centre should immediately disband the committee and introduce a bill in Parliament straightaway for creation of a separate state,” a JAC statement said.